


Anywhere I Go There You Are

by themutesinger



Series: Star Wars fic Collection [1]
Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: M/M, Okay so this is basically the bounty hunter stormpilot au from tumblr, and when finn gets him away from the first order he basically follows poe everywhere, anyways its good and poe is a bounty hunter working for the resistance, the idea came from a user called 90sgansey I believe?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-12
Updated: 2016-09-15
Packaged: 2018-05-12 08:42:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 30,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5660062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/themutesinger/pseuds/themutesinger
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Being followed around a desert by a puppy-like reformed stormtrooper was not how Poe Dameron was expecting his day to go.</p><p>NOTE: I'm going through this to edit it and hopefully finish it off before starting the sequel.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm really pumped to start writing this because until stormpilot came along I had no desire to write period so thanks for this fandom! :) also the title comes from the song Fire and the Flood by Vance Joy which may or may not feature on a playlist I'm working on :)

"You can do this, you can do this," FN-2187 mutters to himself, trying not to dash down the hall like a maniac to the interrogation room where the Resistance Pilot is being kept. He coughs when he reaches the doorway to alert the trooper on guard. "Ren wants the prisoner." The trooper nods and releases the restraints on the table, letting the slightly dazed looking Pilot flop forward and onto solid ground with unsure legs. FN-2187 takes hold of the Pilot's arm and marches him out of the room with his blaster pressed firmly to the Pilot's chest. He spots an alcove a little further down the passageway and nudges the Pilot towards it. "Turn here," he mutters, watching confusion quickly overtake the Pilot's carefully blank face as FN-2187 blocks the alcove the best he can with his armor. "Listen carefully. If you do exactly as I say I can get you out of here." 

"What?" FN-2187 sighs and pulls off his helmet, the familiar relief of cool, fresh air on his sweat-soaked skin a brief comfort when the Pilot's eyes widen at the sight of him, as if he hadn't expected to see a person underneath.

"This is a rescue, I'm helping you escape," he replies. "Can you fly a TIE fighter?" 

"Are you with the resistance?"

"What? No! No, I'm breaking you out. Can you fly a TIE fighter?" FN-2187 repeats feeling that maybe he hadn't got his point across the first time.

"I can fly anything," the Pilot replies warily. "Why are you helping me?" 

FN-2187 pauses for a moment, considering his answer, "Because it's the right thing to do." The Pilot raises an eyebrow and looks him over then smirks.

"You need a pilot."

"I need a pilot," FN-2187 agrees, and the Pilot nods.

"We're gonna do this," he says, and FN-2187 smiles in a way he hasn't since Slip turned fifteen, taken by surprise when the pilot graces him with a smile in return. 

\---

 "Okay, Stay calm. Stay calm."

"I am calm," the Pilot whispers back, firmly enough that FN-2187 believes him.

"I'm talking to myself," he replies, worried that the Pilot can feel the tremor of nervous energy in the fingers gripping his arm. The Pilot angles to turn so FN-2187 whispers "Not yet," then nudges him once a patrol passes them without incident. "Okay, go. This way." He guides them behind a TIE fighter and removes the handcuffs he had to put on the guy to get him out of interrogation. 

"I've always wanted to fly one of these things, " the Pilot says as he slides into the cockpit, FN-2187 sliding in behind him. "Can you shoot?"

"Blasters I can," he replies, brow creasing as he takes in the numerous switches and toggles in front of him.  

 “Okay, same principle. Use the toggle on the left to switch between missiles, canons, and pulses. Use the sight on the right to aim. The triggers to fire," the Pilot explains. FN-2187 runs through the explanation in his mind, eyes roving desperately over the controls even as most of it slips past him.

"This is very complicated." There's a simultaneous sinking and soaring in his stomach when the fighter leaves the ground, nerves steadily increasing when he realizes the anchor is still attached to the ship.

The Pilot swears softly under his breath, "Okay I can fix this." FN-2187 watches Troopers and Officers fill the hangar and take aim at the ship and so he pulls the trigger, blasting anything he can to help get them off of the ship. "14, missed 18... I got it!" The TIE fighter shoots out of the hangar beautifully once the anchor snaps off and FN-2187 cannot help his excitement as Space opens up around them in a burst of stars and a vastness that reaches the impossible feeling of freedom slowly growing in the pit of his stomach. "Wow, this thing really moves. All right we gotta take out as many of these cannons as we can if we're going to get very far," the Pilot says as he angles the ship under the belly of the Star Destroyer, tempering FN-2187's excitement in unison with the cannon blasts rocking the ship. "I'm going to get us in position, just stay sharp!" He flies under the hull, spotting the first set of turbolasers. "Up ahead, you see it? I got us dead centre, it's a clean shot." FN-2187 checks the sight and when he sees everything line up he fires, both cannons exploding as one and he whoops his success.

"Yeah! You see that?! Did you see that?" The Pilot chuckles behind him.

"Yeah, I saw it! Hey, what's your name?"

"FN-2187."

There's a pause and then: "FN... what?"

"It's the only name they ever gave me," FN-2187 admits quietly.

"Well I ain't using it. FN, huh? Finn. I'm gonna call you Finn. That alright?" FN-2187 tests the name in his mind and soft laughter bubbles out of him unchecked.

"Finn," he says out loud, still giddy. "Yeah, Finn. I like that! I like that."

"I'm Poe. Poe Dameron." FN... Finn smiles, there hasn't been someone he thought he could call friend since Combat Training, but he thinks this Pilot might change that.

"It's good to meet you Poe."

"Good to meet you to Finn." Suddenly there's a beeping on the monitor and Finn can see tracking missiles shooting towards them from the Ventral cannons. "It's coming towards you! On my right, your left. See it?"

Finn watches the sight until the missile comes within range and then fires, getting the first missile in one go and he laughs to himself- he just might be getting good at this.

"Nice shot!" Poe says, and Finn feels warm at the praise in a way he hadn't when he was told he completed a simulation well. Then he squints out of the TIE fighter's window, a planet getting larger beneath them.

"Where are we going?"

"We're going back to Jakku, that's where."

"We can't go back to Jakku! We need to get out of this system."

"I've got to get my droid before the First Order does."

"Your _droid_?" Finn asks incredulously, firing at anything that comes towards them and managing to hit most of them even with his mind distracted.

"That's right. They're a BB unit, orange and white, one of a kind."

"I don't care what colour they are! No droid can be that important."

"This one is pal! We've been together a long time, me and that droid. Plus, I've got a lot riding on something they have."

"We have to get as far away from the First Order as we can. If we go back to Jakku, we die."

"They have a map to Luke Skywalker. The Resistance is paying me a helluva lot to get it for them."

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me. Wait, I thought you were _with_ the Resistance?"

"What can I say, they pay well. Even for the occasional Bounty Hunter with the right set of skills." Finn gapes for a second, then decides he can't exactly judge when it comes to morals and occupations, but is distracted enough that the side of the fighter gets struck, and starts to go down.

"Poe, are you alright?" Finn panics when there is no response, and he can see the fighter is burning through Jakku's atmosphere. "Poe?!" Space begins to disappear rapidly, and once Finn sees sky, he pulls the ejector on his seat, hoping Poe was able the same.

\---

FN- Finn, wakes with heat blasting his face and panic seizing his heart. He unhooks the belt on the ejector and leans down to grab the emergency rations pack under the seat before taking in a frantic overview of his situation. "Poe! Poe?!?" He stumbles around looking for the Pilot before he spots a plume of smoke coming from what must be the wreckage of the fighter, so he runs as fast as he can on ever-shifting desert sand until he finds the TIE fighter, in ruins. "Poe!?" Finn spots the sleeve of Poe's coat and rushes to pull him out, only to find that the jacket wasn't on its owner when they crashed. The ground shudders under the ship and Finn is forced to step away from the wreckage, watching helplessly as it sinks into the sand, screaming Poe's name. 

"Easy buddy, easy. I'm right here." Finn whips around to find Poe watching him, the Pilot spotting the jacket dangling limply from Finn's hand. "Hey, you found my jacket!" Finn mechanically hands him his jacket, letting their fingers brush to assure himself that this is real and the man in front of him is not some desert-made hallucination. "Thanks for getting me out of there buddy, I owe you one." Poe claps him on the shoulder then turns to leave.

"Wait! Where are you going?" Finn asks, breaking out of his stupor. 

"I have to go find my Droid!" Poe replies without turning. Finn runs after him then grabs his arm.

"Can I come?"

"No! Look pal, I've got a lot of money riding on this mission so I'd like to just get it over with and I can't have you getting in my way." 

"I won't be in the way, I promise! It's just until we reach a town I can find transport in." Finn says, giving Poe an earnest, pleading look it's hard to say no to. "And I have rations!" Finn adds desperately, brandishing the emergency pack. 

"Where did you get this?" Poe asks, snatching the pack from Finn's hand.

"They keep them under the ejector seats in case of an emergency. If you can make it back before the rations run out, you're an asset to the First Order. If you can't then they just got rid of dead weight. Of course, only the Pilots get them." Poe frowns at the mention of the First Order, then curses when he realizes he can't remember which direction he had come from, and won't be able to retrieve his own ration pack.

"All right fine. You can come with me, but only until we find a town!" Finn beams at him and hugs him enthusiastically, saying "thank you" softly in his ear. Poe's lips quirk up behind Finn's back as he pats the former stormtrooper in return. "Okay, that's enough! Keep up buddy." Poe stalks off along the hot sand after gently pushing Finn away, jacket slung over his shoulder and the pack securely tied to a belt loop. Finn follows immediately, starting to shed pieces of his armor as quickly as he can to combat the heat he could feel in the sweat dripping down his face as his mind clears. 

They walk for hours, nothing but sand and the harsh glare of the sun on their skin for miles and miles. Finn has almost drained one of the three insulated water bottles they have in the emergency kit by the time the sun starts to set, although he feels like he must have sweat off a thousand of them. They don't speak as they settle down, shivering under the purple haze of the desert night, the sky expansive and so bright above them; swirling galaxies and the bright dots of far of planets dancing in front of Finn's eyes like nothing he has a name for, but feels like the burning curl of awareness in the back of his mind that awakened in the midst of battle, something all-encompassing and beautiful. Poe hands him a ration bar and when he bites down on it he can't help his look of shock when a strange taste blooms over his tongue. "What's the matter kid? These bars aren't that awful."

Finn shakes his head, "I didn't know food could taste like this."

"Like what?" Finn searches his mind for the words, but comes up short and shrugs.

"Not like chalk I guess." And then Poe gives him a look, his brow creasing and not-quite pity in his eyes, as if he can't believe that Finn has never eaten food better than a crummy ration bar in an emergency kit that's probably sat under the ejector seat of a TIE fighter for weeks. It's the look Finn imagines matched the tone of his voice when he said "FN... what?" after he told him his designation. Poe shakes his head and holds up his hand, as if to comfort Finn, then thinks better of it and puts it down, reaching for a packet of dried fruits instead.

"Well then you're gonna love these."

\---

Finn falls asleep quickly after dinner, the stress of denouncing everything he ever knew and nearly dying in a fighter crash knocking him out as soon as his head lands on his crossed arms. Poe doesn't have his luck; every time his eyes close he feels a push at the base of his skull, the man in the mask urging his presence upwards throughout Poe's mind, the phantom pain that comes with the memory almost too much to bear. He opens his eyes with a sigh, choosing to watch his companion instead, the way his face is lax, as if dreamless, but ultimately peaceful. It's a nice face, with full lips, and beautiful dark skin and eyebrows with a small peak about three-quarters of the way through; Poe imagines this face will cause him problems in the future. Finn shuffles a bit in his sleep, one of his arms stretching out across the sand, and his nose creasing while his hand twitches. Without thinking Poe reaches out with one of his own and wraps Finn's hand up in his, smiling when the former stormtrooper relaxes again. He lets his heavy eyelids droop closed then, imagining the pushing force in his mind as something else entirely- a larger hand tangled up with his and an innocent smile as bright as the beaming sun.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw in end notes

 Finn wakes up with sweat covering his body and the sun in his groggy eyes. He tries to wipe the sleep away with his thumbs and wearily sits up, blinking at Poe, who sits beside him gingerly sipping water in between bites of his protein bar.

"Morning buddy! Hungry?" Finn nods and takes a bar from the open pack, eating it as quickly as he could then taking a big gulp of water.

"Whoa, slow down pal! We don't have to get going that quickly." Finn frowns at his new friend, then realizes he's eating his own bar at a much more sedate pace, just like Finn had last night when he was still surprised by the taste of the bar in his mouth, and he feels his cheeks heat up.

"Sorry, I'm just used to eating quickly." The pilot looks at him quizzically, so he explains. "We had scheduled mealtimes, and you had to eat fast because they'd take your plate away if you didn't finish in time." Poe's expression quickly changes from confusion to anger, and then neutrally blank after a heavy sigh.

"All right, well, you never have to do that again, okay buddy?" Finn nods, and Poe smiles his wonderful crooked smile at him, handing him another bar before packing up the kit. "Here, take this I'm just going to scout ahead." Finn nods again, and tears open the bar's packaging, taking a slow bite and smiling because he can.

\---

Finn wishes Poe would talk to him while they walk. Any conversation at all would be better than suffering the scorching sun and glare of the sand in silence as sweat drips from their bodies and their skin dries to the point where Finn's cheeks are starting to crack. Anytime Finn tries to speak, hoarse though his voice is, Poe just shakes his head, sweat-soaked dark curls bouncing around his face, and keeps moving or takes longer strides than he needs to, putting him further and further ahead. Finn wonders if he's done something wrong.

Suddenly Poe's back straightens and he lets out a croaking exclamation. "There's a town up ahead buddy!" Finn brightens, his smile pulling at the dried skin on his face, and he runs to the dune Poe is standing on to see a town even smaller than the one the First Order destroyed. He glances briefly at Poe, and then rushes down the sand as fast as he can without slipping- unsuccessfully. He picks himself up and continues running, scouting out a place with water or people that look like Pilots, vaguely hearing Poe's hoarse chuckles behind him.

Poe watches Finn as he talks to an older woman, charming her with his open smile and decides he can leave him alone while he asks around for BB-8. The first three people he asks are varying levels of unhelpful, from completely ignoring him to a grunt and shrug of the shoulders. The politest answer he gets is "No droids around here sweetheart, but if you want to stay in town a couple days I can make it worth your while" from an Abednedo, accompanied by a wink he'd rather not think about ever again. Still shuddering, he finds the woman Finn was talking to earlier and tries his luck once more.

"Excuse me ma'am, but have you seen a droid anywhere? It's a BB unit, orange and white."

"Sorry dear, we don't get much in the way of droids here." Poe's face falls and he starts to walk away when a gentle hand lands on his arm. "But, I heard about a new droid being spotted out in the Niima outpost, it's about a day's walks from here." Poe grins wildly, and takes the woman's hand, kissing her gently wrinkled skin, and making her blush. "Thanks ma'am!" Poe waves back at her and jogs off to tell Finn, only to find him crowded against a wall, the beginnings of anger mixed with fear in his eyes.

\---

The nice older woman had let Finn refill two water bottles at her house for free; an unexpected kindness when all he gets from the other villagers are suspicious glares. He asks a couple of people if they knew where to get transportation off of Jakku, but no one is keen to share information with a stranger. He sighs and goes to find Poe, but is stopped by a wall of flesh. He looks up to find an unsavory looking Crolute and a couple of weathered human men blocking his path.

"Uh, hi there. Is there something I can help you with?"

"We heard you were looking for transport. Wondered what kinda payment you were offering."

"Oh, well I don't really have any money..." The Crolute huffs at this, then turns to his comrades with a smirk. "But! But, I'm willing to do work on the ship to pay my passage."

"Are you now?" The Crolute drawls. "Well I think we have just the position for you, eh boys?" The laughter the creature’s companions let out makes Finn's gut roil, and he sub-consciously takes a few steps back while working out a plan; he's been out-numbered in training before he just has has to pick the right strategy.

"Oh, uh, that's good... I guess?" The three advance until Finn's back is firmly pressed against the solid wall of a hut. 

"Oh yes. I know just what to do with a pretty thing like you." The Crolute raises a hand to stroke Finn's cheek with a salacious grin that has Finn's discomfort rapidly turning to fear and the intense need to rip the offending hand from its owner's body.

He's reaching up to do just that when Poe's voice sounds out of nowhere. "What exactly do you think you're doing?" Finn sighs with relief , the stifling feeling of fear lifting as the Crolute turns to look at Poe, freeing him enough for Finn to kick out at the backs of the creature’s knees to knock him into his companions. He barely has time to revel in his success before Poe is grabbing his hand and pulling him into a run that evolves into a sprint when they hear pursuing feet on hard-packed earth. They run and run until there is nothing around them except sand dunes and bright heat, the town merely a speck of black in the distance. "Are you all right Buddy?" Poe asks as soon as he catches his breath. Finn notices that Poe hasn't yet let go of his hand, and so Finn revels in the feeling of comfort and safety that radiates through him; so different from the revulsion and uneasiness the Crolute's touch had caused or the pain that came with training or a well-meant slap to his back with his armor digging into his skin.  

"Yeah," Finn replies breathlessly. "Thanks for the assisst back there."  

"You don't have to thank me for that Buddy, creatures like that shouldn't be allowed to live. I would've done the same for anyone." Poe drops his hand and starts walking then, and Finn ingores the loss he feels at the action and follows him.

"Where are we going now?" 

"Niima Outpost. One of the women said there was a droid there that looked like Beebee-Ate." Poe turns and looks Finn over again, concern marring his handsome face once more. "Are you sure you're all right Buddy?" 

Finn opens his mouth to say yes again, then closes it and takes the time to catalogue his current state. Symptoms: heavy breathing, fatigue, increased heart rate and blood pressure of adrenaline, slower thought process due to the heat, stomach pains similar to nausea. Analysis: "No, not really."

"Okay, well do you wanna take a break? Maybe eat something?" Finn immediately shakes his head no.

"I don't think I could eat right now. Water maybe?' Poe hands him his bottle and Finn takes slow, measured sips to calm his stomach; to little effect. 

"Anything else?"

"Maybe, uh, maybe you could hold my hand again?" The words slip out without Finn's direct approval, and he immediately looks down at the sand; mortified. 

"I don't think- Sure Buddy. I can do that." Finn's head snaps up so quickly it hurts, and he can't help the smile that takes over his face. He looks down as Poe links their fingers together, the browns of their skin at once a contrast and a harmony, an overwhelming sense of right filling him; and he wonders if this is what it means to truly be a free man, this comfort and security and happiness.

\---

Finn doesn't let go of Poe's hand for the rest of the day; eating and drinking one-handed, he doesn't even let go to shield his eyes or wipe sweat from his brow. It's sweet, and Poe cannot help the way his eyes crinkle at the corners and his lips twitch up in a smile whenever Finn's hand squeezes his gently, as if reassuring himself that Poe's still there. The beaming smile has barely left the kid's face for a second, and Poe wonders if this is the only time someone's touched him without the intent to hurt. Finn reluctantly lets go when they find a dune to camp behind for the night and Poe has to untie the emergency pack from his belt. After they've eaten, Poe slides his hand across the sand, brushing his fingers gently across Finn's knuckles until the former stormtrooper links their fingers himself, the same look of wonder and happiness on his face as he had when Poe took his hand the first time.

"Goodnight Buddy."

"Goodnight Poe," Finn replies, his eyes slipping shut and breathing evening out almost immediately afterwards. Poe resigns himself to at least an hour of restlessness, closing his eyes to the phantom pressure of what had to have been the force holding no appeal to him. He turns over on his side to watch Finn again, enamored by how smooth and lax the dark skin of his face looks, how his full bottom lip twitches and the shuddery snores that puff out of his nose every other breath. He drifts off between the strong set of Finn's jawline and the gentle bridge of his nose, not really asleep, but barely aware; until he hears Finn scream that is. The sound goes dead in the open desert air with nothing to reverberate off of but soft sand, but it startles Poe into full alertness. The first thing he notices, perhaps irrationally, is that Finn's warm hand is no longer in his; instead it is reaching out desperately across the sand as Finn writhes, calling out for a Slip.

"Finn! Buddy you gotta wake up, it's just a dream!" Poe takes the hand that is scrabbling at the sand in one of his and shakes Finn's shoulder with the other.

"No, no, NO!" Finn shouts. "Slip!"

"Finn! Finn wake up!" Poe shakes Finn harder and has to scramble back when he shoots up onto his knees, looking wildly around him, before he lets out a sob, and tears fall freely down his face.

"Poe?"

"It’s okay Finn, you were just having a nightmare.” Finn nods, and wipes at the wetness in his eyes.

"I've never had one like that before. At least, not that I can remember." Poe swallows thickly, and tries not to let his anger at the statement show beyond a tightened grip on Finn's hand. Instead he shifts closer to Finn and puts an arm around his shoulders, the former stormtrooper tensing at first in surprise, then relaxing into Poe's side on a shaky inhale.

"Do you remember what you were dreaming about?"  Finn closes his eyes for a moment, then nods shakily.

"I was back in the village on Jakku, the night you were captured. I remember being... not afraid really, but anxious. I didn't know if I could do what they wanted me to, to kill those people, and then Slip got shot and it was like I felt his pain myself. I tried to get to him, but I couldn't reach, and then there was blood on my helmet and the other 'troopers shot the villagers, and I-I couldn't..." Finn trails off, shaking with silent tears once more and Poe holds him tighter, squeezing his hand rhythmically.

"Was Slip your friend?" Poe asks softly.

"Not really, we didn't really have friends, and no one liked me much anyways. We were on the same Fire Team; me, Slip, Nines, and Zeroes, but Slip was the youngest. I had already been in training seven years when they bought him and he was so small and young, so I decided to look after him. I taught him how to eat quickly and how to do up his armour without help... I guess he was like what you would call a brother. When he started training we realized that Slip was different, slower than the others, clumsy, and sometimes you got the feeling that he didn't really understand the orders or maybe that he just couldn't. So I tried to help him whenever I could, picking up after him if he broke something, helping him hit his targets, going back for him when the others wouldn't. But one day, Captain Phasma pulled me aside and told me to stop, and I didn't want to, but I knew if I didn't I'd probably be reconditioned. So I wouldn't help Slip when he messed up, no matter how awful it made me feel, and he stopped talking to me. Eventually he was just like everyone else, mostly ignoring me unless they had to listen to me in training. At least until Jakku. When he got shot, I ran over to him. I couldn't leave him no matter what Phasma or anyone else wanted. He tried to say something, but I couldn't hear him, then he put his hand on my helmet before he died, smearing it with his blood." Poe feels horrified by this, knowing it was entirely possible that he was the one who shot Finn's friend, no his  _brother_ , and full of a need to comfort Finn, who doesn't even notice the tears sliding down his face anymore while he takes a shaky pause. "I couldn't shoot the villagers after that, something in me realized that I was the outsider not because no one liked me, but because somewhere deep down I had always known it was wrong, what the First Order was doing, their conditioning had never truly worked on me. It was wrong that an eighteen-year-old would die for people that killed innocents, that would have sacrificed him in a second because he was weak. I knew I had to get out, there was nothing for me there. They wanted me reconditioned after Jakku, and so I found you. You're the first real friend I've ever had." Finn smiles at Poe before reaching into the collar of his shirt and pulling out a thin cord of leather with a small tooth dangling from it, tied on by numerous loops of worn string. "This was the first tooth Slip lost when he was still little. 'Troopers aren't really allowed possessions so I kept this and hid it real well, so I could always have a piece of him with me. I knew I would have been reconditioned if they found it, but Slip was worth it." He smooths his thumb over the tiny white tooth, big enough to have been a molar, then tucks it back into his shirt and relaxes against Poe's side. Poe isn't sure what to say after that, so he just wraps his other arm around Finn, tucking his head under the Pilot's chin. Finn lets out a shaky yawn and nuzzles closer unconsciously, drifting off in Poe's arms. Poe lays Finn down gently, pulling off his jacket to lay it over his still-quivering form. He lays down next to him, taking his hand once more and closing his eyes fruitlessly; knowing sleep would evade him indefinitely after all he'd just heard.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for insinuations of sexual assault, but nothing happens. Also I felt like messing around with Slip's character to explain why it was that specific stormtrooper dying that made Finn break his conditioning, I hope it was okay? Hope you liked it!


	3. Chapter 3

 This time when Finn wakes, the heat is not the first thing he registers; the arm wrapped around his waist and the calloused fingers tangled up with his are. The contact feels amazing, if startling at first; warm and comforting the way he used to imagine touch being, and he wants more than anything to stay there forever. He settles back into Poe for a brief moment, sighing contentedly, then shifts away once the sweat starts building up between Poe's chest and the back of his shirt. He stretches with a cheek-stinging yawn as he sits up, surprised when Poe's jacket slides to the sand beside him. He picks it up, supple leather running over his hands and the smell of motor oil and desert sand reaches his nose when he holds it close to him.

"You should keep it today." Poe's voice startles Finn into turning around to see the Pilot watching him with an expression Finn doesn't have the words for, eyes still heavy with fatigue and Finn is startled by how worn his friend looks. "The jacket," Poe clarifies when Finn doesn't speak. "You need to keep the sun off your face, your cheeks are getting really bad." Finn reaches up to scratch the back of his neck, but nods, letting the jacket fall into his lap as he reaches for the emergency pack to get breakfast out.

"Thanks Poe." The Pilot waves him off tiredly as he rips into his ration bar. "Are you all right?"

"I didn't really get a lot of sleep buddy," Poe replies, scraping a hand over his face. "Listen Finn, there's something I gotta tell you." He waits until Finn looks at him curiously, still munching half-heartedly at his own bar, before taking a deep breath in. "It was me that-"

"That killed Slip? I know Poe. I've known since the five minutes of rest I got between being sent to reconditioning and breaking you out of your cell," Finn says, picking crumbs off of the jacket in his lap to hide his watery eyes.

"Why did you help me then? If you knew?"

"In a way, I've known Slip was going to die since he was fifteen and Captain Phasma told me that he would stand or fall on his own. The First Order was no place for weakness and if he continued down his path eventually he would have been sacrificed on some suicide mission. I'm not entirely sure Jakku wasn't one." Finn breathes in shakily and Poe itches to take his hand again, but won't, not until Finn gets this out. "Slip, he... killed people Poe. Innocent civilians that had already surrendered. In our first real mission, before Jakku even. I don't mean he deserved to die I just... I guess what I'm saying is, Jakku was a battlefield, small maybe, but still. We were fighting on opposite sides and you were trying to protect yourself, protect the Resistance's secrets. And I understand that. Of course I'm upset and I probably won't ever be able to forget it, that it was you, but I  _do_ forgive you Poe. I forgive you," Finn finishes firmly, despite the tears he's holding back and Poe pulls him into a hug, arms tight around his shoulders while a couple of hot tears slide down his neck. He holds Finn until he pulls away to gulp down half of a water bottle, both to finish his breakfast off and to replenish all the water he's lost to grieving. 

"Why didn't you tell me last night Buddy?" Finn looks up at him with a sheepish smile.

"I, uh, didn't want you to feel guilty, I guess. Didn't work out so well though." Poe lets out a chuckle at that and pulls Finn close to his side in a one-armed hug.

"You're a good man Finn."

\---

They make it to Niima Outpost when the sun is high in the sky, their water bottles are empty, and their clasped hands are practically glued together by sweat. Finn lowers the jacket he has draped over his head and slides it on instead, dragging Poe behind him as he runs towards the Outpost and then as he darts between tents and people, desperately searching for water, but being brushed off rudely by everyone he asks. Finally, he spots a trough in the middle of the outpost and releases Poe's hand as he throws himself onto the ground beside it, hastily taking heavy gulps of water, simultaneously relieved by the cool liquid easing his parched lips and dry throat and gagging at its horrible taste.

"I don't think you wanna be drinking that Buddy. It's probably more slobber than anything else." Finn just shrugs and takes another gulp; Poe couldn't talk because he had gotten to have the last sips of water (sure Finn had insisted, but still). "All right kid, you enjoy your happabore spit, I'm gonna ask around for BB-8." Finn nods, and takes a few more sips of the disgusting water while he listens to Poe's footsteps grow quieter. After a last gulp he sits back on his heels to take in his surroundings without the haze of dehydration clouding his mind. Niima Outpost isn't all that fancy for being the largest settlement the planet has to offer, mostly just tents and stands for washing and trading scavenged items, fenced in with a large trading hut at its centre patched together with sheets of scrap metal and a vaguely official-looking building on its outskirts. Poe is at the trading hut arguing with the Crolute behind the counter, irritation scrunching his eyebrows together in a way Finn thinks is cute. A shout from behind him has Finn turning around to see two traders approaching a girl around the same age Slip was, one grabbing her from behind while his partner tosses a sack over a round orange-and-white droid- BB-8! "Hey!" Finn yells, running over to help the girl only to stop, impressed, when she takes them both out single-handedly with her staff and a few well-placed kicks. The girl bends down to take the sack off BB-8 talking to them reassuringly before whipping around to glare at Finn. When she starts running at him, Finn sprints for his life. He looks back to see if she's still chasing him, only to be knocked flat on his back by the girl's staff, and he looks up at her with a mixture of wariness and confusion.

"What's your hurry, thief?"

"What? Thief? Ow!" His yelp of pain is caused by the astromech droid beside him, their taser prong at the ready.

"That jacket. This droid says you  _stole_ it."

"I've had a pretty messed up few days, all right? So I'd appreciate it if you stopped accusing me of- Ouch! Stop that!" His reprimand seems to have no effect on the droid, who just waves their taser menacingly at him.

"Where did you get it?  It belongs to their master."

"Poe Dameron! It belongs to Poe Dameron." He turns to the droid with pleading eyes. "He's alright BeeBee-Ate, I promise. He just lent me his jacket. We've been wandering the desert non-stop for the past three days since we escaped the First Order; looking for you." The droid beeps enthusiastically at the mention of their master, then apologetically at Finn, who pats it as he stands up.

"Escaped the First Order? So you're with the Resistance?" The girl asks, suddenly very close, with a smile on her face Finn really likes; small, but full of wonder and very sweet.

"Uh, yes, I am. I am with the Resistance. Definitely." It was technically true, Finn hasn't trekked halfway across Jakku with Poe Dameron just to abandon him now, and he would say anything for this girl to keep looking at him like he's someone special.

"BeeBee-Ate says they're on a special mission. They have to get back to your base."

"Apparently they're carrying a map to Luke Skywalker," Finn replies, craning his neck to see if he can find Poe.

"Luke Skywalker!" The girl exclaims, and Finn thinks that Slip could have had her same enthusiasm once. "I thought he was a myth?" Finn hums in agreement absently, then freezes, spotting two Stormtroopers by a tent. He acts quickly, grabbing the girl's hand like Poe had grabbed his in the village and pulls her along, trying to find shelter and Poe at the same time. "What are you doing? Let go of me!"

"No, we gotta move." The girl keeps trying to pry his hand off of her wrist, and he tries his best to ignore her so he can focus.

"I know how to run without you holding my hand!"

"BeeBee-Ate, stay close! Poe where are you?" Finn yells back as cannon fire starts to hit the sand and he finally pulls them into a tent, releasing the girl's hand to search for a blaster of his own.

"Why are they shooting at  _both_ of us?"

"They saw you with me and BeeBee-Ate, you're marked."

"Well, thanks for that!"

"Hey, I'm not the one who chased you down with a stick! Does anyone have blasters around here?" Finn huffs irritatedly. He falls silent though, urging the girl down into a crouch until he can clearly hear the whistle of a TIE Fighter and pulls the girl along again.

"Stop taking my hand!" is the last thing Finn hears before a blast sends them flying across the sand. Finn opens his eyes to the girl standing above him worriedly.

"Are you okay?" The girl crinkles her nose at this, surprise blooming on her face as if she's unused to people asking after her well-being.

"Yes, I'm fine." She answers, holding out her hand to help Finn get up before running into open space towards a lack-lustre shipyard. "Follow me!"

"Hold on, we have to wait for Poe! We can't outrun them and we need a pilot."

"We might in that quad jumper! And we've got a pilot!"

"You?" Finn asks, trying not to let his disbelief colour his tone. "Poe! Where are you?" He looks behind him every few seconds, trying to find a familiar head of soft dark curls in the scrambling crowd, and spotting a tarp-covered ship behind them. "What about that ship?"

"That one's garbage!" Suddenly she stops short, the quad jumper they were heading for, blown to pieces. "The garbage will do!" She changes course with no hesitation and Finn follows as quickly as he can while trying to find Poe, when finally, he spots him, too far away. "POE!" The Pilot starts running to them, but is stopped by cannon fire from a ship and has to dart backwards.

"Just go Finn! I'll catch up with you! I promise!"

"NO! Poe!"

"Go on buddy! It'll be alright! I'll see you on D'Qar!" With a final wave, Poe runs back into the crowded village, taking a part of Finn with him. Finn runs onto the  _Mi Con,_ the rusted over name strange for a ship, and goes down to the gunner's position when the girl asks him to. As he's rocked back and forth by the chair, he lets his worry for Poe fade into the back of his mind.  _'He's gonna be okay. He has to be.'_

Flying with the girl while escaping TIE Fighters is a different experience then with Poe, though no less exciting. After they escape Jakku's atmosphere, he meets the girl in an open corridor, adrenaline rippling through both of them. 

 

"Nice shooting!"

"Nice flying!"

"Thanks."

"How did you do it?"

"I don't know!"

"No one trained you?"

"I've piloted ships, but I've never left the planet. Your last shot was great! You got him on the first blast!"

"You set me up good, it was perfect!" Finn smiles easily at the girl, he hasn't connected with anyone else like this except Poe, and even that felt a little bit different then this easy friendship. BB-8's loud beeping breaks the moment, reminding them both that there are still things to do.

"It's alright BeeBee-Ate, he's with the resistance, remember? He'll get you home, we both will. I don't know your name."

"Finn!" He replies. “What's yours?"

"I'm Rey."

"Rey," Finn says, testing the name quietly and finding he likes it. Suddenly there's a noise from within the ship and smoke starts billowing out of a grate in the ground.

"Help me with this quick!" Rey quickly pulls the grate away, hopping inside to find the problem.

"What's going on?" Finn asks, crouching near a pile of assorted tools and parts, ready to help however he can.

"It's the motivator. Grab me a Harris wrench, check in there," Rey replies, pointing vaguely at a toolbox. A few seconds is all it takes for Finn to locate a tool he recognizes from basic repairs training, and he hurries to hand it to Rey.

"How bad is it?"

"If we want to live it is not good."

"But they're hunting for us now, we've got to get out of this system!" Rey pops up exasperatedly, and points to some other random tool she needs.

"BeeBee-Ate says the location of the Rebel Base is 'need to know' if I'm going to be taking you there, I need to know!"

"This?" Finn asks, holding something somewhat cylindrical to her, which she takes with a nod.

"Poe said something about D'Qar, but I don't know where that is." Rey looks just as confused as he does, so he turns to BB-8. "You gotta tell us where the base is." BB-8 beeps indignantly, but Finn has no idea what they mean. "I don't speak that buddy. Between us, I'm not  _really_ with the resistance." BB-8 beeps in shock and rolls away from Finn. "At first I was just trying to get away from the First Order, but after being with Poe... I just want to help. So, if you tell us where your base is, we'll get you there. Please?"

"Pilex driver, hurry!" Rey says, looking from Finn to BB-8 until Finn hands her the tool. "So where is it?"

"Go on BeeBee-Ate, tell her." The droid gives him one last look he can only describe as searching, then beeps out an answer to Rey.

"The Illenium system?" She repeats incredulously.

"Yeah, that's it, good job BeeBee-Ate!" He gives the droid a thumbs up for good measure, smiling when the droid copies the gesture with his little welding torch.

"I can drop you two at the Ponemah terminal. Bonding tape, hurry!"

"What about you?" Finn asks, searching through the disorganized pile and making a note to fix it when they're a good distance away from this system.

 "I've got to get back to Jakku!" Another one? Seriously!?

"Back to Jak- Why does everyone want to go back to Jakku?" Finn exclaims, holding up a roll of what looks like tape, only for Rey to shake her head.

"Not that one." Finn goes back to searching muttering 'Kriffing Jakku' under his breath. He holds up another roll. "No." And no again to the next one, Rey pointing insistently, but not very clearly. "The one I'm pointing to!" He's seriously debating yelling at her after every rejected roll of what is clearly tape, but obviously not good enough. "No, No, No! If we don't patch this up, the propulsion tank will overflow and flood this ship with poisonous gas!" Finally, BB-8 takes pity on him and nudges a roll of tape towards him.

"This?"

"Finally!"

"Hey, Rey?"

"Mhm?"

"You're a pilot, you can fly anywhere. Why go back? Do you have a family? A boyfriend? Cute boyfriend?" Finn says in a teasing voice, strangely, Poe's face pops into his mind as he asks, something to look into later, when he feels safer. He's also starting to realize that Poe probably didn't talk to him in the desert because he asks too many invasive questions.

"None of your business, that's why." Suddenly, the entire ship shudders, and Finn and Rey exchange a look before running to the cockpit.

"That can't be good."

"It isn't," Rey replies. "Someone is locked onto us; the controls are overridden."  Finn's eyes widen as a ship starts getting closer and closer, and he climbs on his seat to get a better look, using the top of Rey's head for stability.

"Get off!" She exclaims, pushing at his hand. When he sees the ship he has no doubts as to who it is. "You see anything?"

"It's the First Order," Finn replies dejectedly. Rey however, sits up straighter, looking determined.

"What do we do? There must be something!" Finn starts to shake his head, then stills, a crazy idea filling his mind.

"You said poisonous gas, right?"

"Yes, but I fixed that."

"Can you unfix it?" Finn asks, a manic grin on his face.  Rey cottons on with a smile, and they dart out of the cockpit, grabbing filtration masks on the way back to the motivator. Finn pulls off the grate and hops in, reaching his arms out. "Come on BeeBee-Ate!" The droid rolls easily into his arms, but knocks Finn flat on his back, weighing more than the former stormtrooper expected they would. Finn lets the air struggle back into his system while Rey hops in, pulling the grate over them.

"Are you sure this will work on the Stormtroopers?"

"Yeah, their masks filter out smoke, not toxins. Hurry!" Rey glares at him but gets to work, and Finn closes his eyes, hoping for all he's worth that this actually works.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost cried separating them... I'm in deep! Also Finn has totally picked up Poe's habit of calling people buddy! A bit shorter, but the next chapter will be more involved, and we'll get to see what happened to Poe! Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and I'll just slide in the link to my stormpilot playlist ;)  
> http://8tracks.com/themutesinger/anywhere-i-go-there-you-are


	4. Chapter 4

Poe watches Finn disappear into the tarped-up ship with a heavy heart and a clouded mind, hoping he hasn't just lost Finn forever. He watches as the ship shakily lifts off the ground and the tarp slides off to reveal a ship he has only seen in pictures and holovids before. A lot more decrepit then he remembers, and more than a little less fluid, but there is no denying that the  _Millennium Falcon_ has just taken off _right in front of him._ There is also no denying that the second it speeds off the Outpost is of no interest to the First Order and they take off after it the second they can. He sighs, knowing there is nothing he can do from here and re-enters Niima, searching for someone who can give him some answers. Most people are trying to pick up after the damage caused when the First Order swept through the Outpost, and there is no kriffing way he's going to talk to Unkar Plutt again, so he searches the crowd for someone standing off to the side, unoccupied. He spots an old woman sitting in a tent out of the sun, watching the clean-up mournfully, and decides that's as good a place to start as any. "Excuse me, ma'am?" The old woman chuckles as he comes closer to her, waving him over with calloused, wrinkled hands.

"No one has called me ma'am in decades son," she says as he crouches in the sand by her knees. "What can I do for you? Although if you're looking for trade I suggest you try elsewhere."

"No ma'am. Just trying to get Off-world as fast as possible."

"Well, I'm afraid I can't help you there. But, there are merchants in Blowback Town a half day's trip west from here that might be willing to take on a passenger."

"Thank you ma'am! Thank you so much!" Poe kisses her hand, much like he did to the woman in the village, although the elderly woman in front of him only smirks at him.

"It's nothing. You go on now; good luck finding your young man." Poe gapes at her, feeling the tips of his ears heat, and is quick to shake his head.

"He's uh, it's not like that ma'am, really." The woman only pats his hand gently and walks away to help tidy a washing station. Poe turns on his heel and starts walking as briskly as he can towards the exit, eager to get out of Niima and off of this Junkyard of a desert planet and back to Finn and BB-8.

\---

Whatever Finn is expecting when the grate is whipped away from the hole they were hiding in, it definitely isn't an old man pointing a blaster at them and a hulking thing made entirely out of hair. "Where are the others?" The old man barks. "Where's the pilot?"

"I'm the pilot," Rey squeaks out, and Finn tries to comfort her with a hand on her arm, remembering how much she didn't like him holding her hand before.

"You?" The man repeats incredulously, his furry companion howling his own disbelief.

"No, it's true. We're the only ones on board," Rey says in reply to a question Finn hadn't heard, which means...

"You can understand that thing?"

"And 'that thing' can understand you, so watch it." The old man steps aside, and waves at them with his blaster. "Come on out." Finn lets Rey out first, then lifts BB-8 over the edge of the hole, pulling himself out last, and immediately putting his hands up when the man's blaster is aimed directly at him. "Where'd you get this ship?"

"Niima Outpost," Rey replies.

"Jakku? That Junkyard?!?"

"Thank you! Junkyard," Finn says smugly to Rey, who glares at him.

"I told you we should have double-checked the Western Reaches," the old man says to his companion, who howls at him again. "Who had it? Ducain?"

"I stole it from Unkar Plutt. And he stole it from the Irving Boys who stole it from Ducain."

"Who stole it from me! Well you tell him that Han Solo just stole back the  _Millennium Falcon_ ; for good."  Rey perks up at this while the old man walks off, immediately following him with that awed smile of hers.

"This is the  _Millennium Falcon_ ? You're  _Han Solo_ ?"

"I used to be."

"Han Solo, the Rebellion General?" Finn asks, remembering reading about him back in training, wondering just how much of his story was twisted for propaganda.

"No, the smuggler!" Rey says, looking at him like he's said something silly.

"Wasn't he a hero?" Finn says, mostly to himself, but hoping for validation he doesn't get.

"Isn't this the ship that made the Kessel Run in fourteen parsecs?"

"Twelve! Fourteen..." Solo makes his way into the cockpit, running his hands over the dashboard with something that's almost nostalgia. "Hey! Some moof-milker put a compressor on the ignition line!"

"Unkar Plutt did. I thought it was a mistake too puts too much-"

"-stress on the hyperdrive." Rey and Solo finish as one, and Finn senses something, a connection he can't quite parse out. Solo stares at Rey for a while, then shakes himself out of it, turning to the creature Finn now thinks might be a Wookie, although he can't be sure as he's never seen one.

"Chewie, throw them into a pod. We'll drop them at the nearest inhabited planet."

"Wait! No, we need your help!"

"My help?"

"This droid needs to get back to the Resistance Base as soon as possible." Rey says, pointing to BB-8 peeking out behind Finn's legs. "They're carrying a map to Luke Skywalker." Solo pauses at that, looking back at them in a mixture of surprise and something like regret.

"You are the Han Solo that fought with the Rebellion. You knew him?" Finn says, reaffirming his earlier questions.

"Yeah, I knew him. I knew Luke." The name falls from Solo's mouth like a whisper, and Finn wonders just what happened between the two of them to make Han say his name like that. A sudden loud noise coming from the freighter around them has Solo groaning. "Don't tell me the Rathtars got out." He takes off out of the open gangplank and darts through his freighter; the others having no choice but to follow him.

"Wait, what? Did you just say Rathtars?" Finn asks fearfully. "Please don't tell me you're hauling Rathtars on this freighter." Solo looks back at him with a grimace.

"I'm hauling Rathtars. Oh great, it’s a Guavian Death Gang. Must have tracked us from Nantoon." Finn isn't sure if that scares him more or less then the thought of being trapped on a ship with Rathtars, visions of holovids and pictures full of blood and death filling his memory.

"What's a rathtar?" Rey asks.

"They're big and they're dangerous," Solo replies, grabbing a bowcaster and handing it to the Wookie, then leading them to a two-ended hallway.

"Have you heard of the Trilla massacre?" Finn asks Rey as they walk, and she shakes her head. "Good." He shudders at the thought of it.

"I've got three of them going to King Prana."

"Three? How did you get them on board?"

"Let's just say we used to have a bigger crew," Solo replies. They stop in the centre of the hallway, and Solo bends down to open up a grate in the floor. "Get below and stay there until I say so. And don't even think about taking the Falcon." Finn lets Rey hop in first, then follows behind her, stopping at the edge and peering up at Solo.

"What about BeeBee-Ate?"

"They stay with me until I get rid of the gang. You can have them then and be on your way."

"And the Rathtars? Where are you keeping them?"

A suction-cupped tentacle smacking against the wall behind Solo answers that question for him and he willingly sinks down below the grate with a shiver. "There's one!"

"What are you going to do?" Rey asks, popping up beside Finn.

"What I always do," Solo replies while closing the grate. "Talk my way out of it."

 \---

 Poe Dameron is getting pretty kriffing tired of walking through the desert. First thing he's doing when he gets back to the Resistance is telling the General he is never, under any circumstances, going anywhere with sand again, no matter how much she pays him. His throat is drier than the sand around him, he has no Finn to keep him company, and despite how strange it sounds his hand feels a little lonely without the comforting warmth of his friend's thicker, longer fingers tangled with his own. The sound of something whirring gets Poe's attention and he turns around in time to see a speeder heading his way. He immediately starts jumping up and down, waving his arms around to get the driver's attention. At first it seems like the speeder is going to run him over, but at the last second it angles right sharply, coming to a stop in front of him. A little figure about half of Poe's height came out of the speeder in front of him, looking him up and down over mirrored eyeshades, the scaly Blarina's face taking on a grin with entirely too many teeth.

"A bit warm to be out walking by oneself in this country, my friend."

"It's not by choice, I assure you," Poe huffs out in reply.

"And where, then, have you come from?" The Blarina asks, his grin getting wider. "Or do you just enjoy Jakku's gentle sunshine?"

"I'm a little lost," Poe replies, that much isn't a lie. 

The Blarina lets out a soft hiss. "Lost indeed. And where is your speeder, friend?"

"Same as I am. Lost," Poe replies, thinking quickly.

"I'm Naka Iit, a scavenger of sorts." Once again, he looks Poe up and down with a sharp eye. "I might just scavenge you."

Poe tenses, painfully aware of his lack of weapon, and despite having the advantage of height, he is dizzy, tired, and thirsty and Blarina's are known for their speed. This particular one is also fast with his words, and so that is what Poe choses as his defense. "It's said the Blarina are an exceptionally hospitable people." This takes the creature off guard, making him frown in astonishment.

"You've heard that? That must be referring to some other Blarina. It certainly doesn't sound like me."

Poe holds up his hands, spreading them wide. "You'd be wasting your time with me, I have nothing worth scavenging." Naka raises his eyeshades and squints at Poe with golden eyes crossed with slitted pupils.

"Then what, exactly, are you doing out in this wasteland with 'nothing'?" Poe can only blame what happens next on the combination of dehydration, fatigue, exasperation at being alone in the desert except for this annoying Blarina, and missing Finn.

"I'm a Bounty Hunter working for the Resistance that just escaped the First Order on a stolen TIE fighter and after crashing on this kriffing Junkyard I've wandered the desert for almost four days. I've lost my droid and my friend and I'd just like to get a damn drink of water." Naka stares at him for a long moment. Then his eyes crinkle, and his scaly cheeks glint in the sun as they bunch up and he bursts out laughing hard enough that a clawed hand reaches up to wipe away tears.

"I'll wet my zinz if you aren't the most bare-faced liar I've encountered in twenty years on this sand box!" He reaches out a hand to pull Poe aboard. "Come with me, my friend. The Blarina  _do_ say that much good accrues to those that help the mad. Liar or madman, whichever you may be, it amuses me to help you. The spirits have placed you here to alleviate my boredom."

"If it's all the same to you," Poe grumbles as he steps aboard the speeder. "I'd be more than happy if you just gave me some water." A clawed hand presses a metal drinking flask towards him as he scrunches into a too small passenger's seat, knees tucked up by his chest.  "I need to get Off-world as soon as possible, " he gasps out between swallows. "A woman told me about Blowback Town, but I've been walking for ages and I haven't found it."

"Of course you do," Naka replies soothingly. "Jakku is no place for the mad. I'm not surprised you haven't found anything; you were walking in the wrong direction. I can take you to Blowback, there is a Blarina merchant there, Ohn Gos, who is afflicted with the sorry habit of listening sympathetically. I'll introduce you. After that, you're on your own." The Blarina is quiet after that, and Poe tries to centre his thoughts and pull himself together- at least until the sand on their left explodes into a cloud, and Naka looks behind them with a hiss, hitting the accelerator. Poe is thrown from his seat and struggles to regain balance.

"What is it? What's wrong?"

"Look for yourself." Poe leans to the right and out, looking behind them to see a much larger speeder gaining on them, blowing another crater in the sand beside them. "Strus clan. A motley collection of Grunks who can't salvage, repair, trade or anything else," Naka says grimly as the speeder is rocked by another near miss. "So they steal from those who can."

"They aren't very good shots," Poe points out, trying to stay positive, even as Naka turns to glare at him.

"Idiot Madman! If they blow us up, they acquire nothing but garbage. They shoot to disable, not destroy."

"They're catching up," Poe tells him, looking behind again. "Can't this thing go any faster?"

 "I'm a salvager, not a pod-racer! My craft is built for hauling, not speed."

"Then let me drive," Poe says, working out a plan in his head and leaning over for the controls.

"What? Are you insane?" Naka exclaims, batting away his hands. "No, wait- you are! Why should I give you control over my only real asset?"

"Because I'm the best pilot you have ever met," Poe replies as another blast slams into the salt flat almost directly underneath the speeder. They wrestle for the controls a while until Naka reluctantly hands them over, thinking that there is little chance of escape anyways. As soon as he's in the pilot's seat Poe turns the clumsy craft sharply left and slows, much to Naka's consternation.

"Giving up already?" The Blarina's voice oozes sarcasm. "I could have done that much myself."

"Indicate that we're going to surrender," Poe commands, ignoring him in order to better study the speeder's controls, pleased to find them fairly simplistic.

"Why not? Isn't that what we're doing?" Naka sighs heavily. "I'll have to ask Ohn for a loan, I hate starting over." He rises up in his seat, making the appropriate gestures to the craft approaching behind them. Poe watches the speeder come up in the rearview, continuing to decelerate until he could make out the faces and assorted appendages of their pursuers, and then waits until they are as close as he's willing to let them come and tilts the speeder's nose up sharply and giving it full power, sending them shooting skyward. The sudden explosive burst from the speeder's engines sends half a dune's worth of sand upwards and back, raining down on the larger craft in a gritty shower that lands in the eyes of any Strus not wearing protective goggles as well as sinking through any opening it could find. As Naka's speeder crests the dune in front of them a sharp grinding noise lets them know that the Strus craft has ingested enough sand to render it temporarily inoperable. The sound fading away as quickly as the craft itself while their speeder drifted over the dunes. Beside him, Naka was letting out some sort of cackling hiss in place of an exclamation of delight, practically bouncing in the co-pilot's chair. "Oh joy, oh pleasurable delight!" A hand reaches over to clap Poe on the shoulder exuberantly. "Saved by a madman! Our destination lies that way," he says, pointing. "I suddenly find myself amenable to letting you drive. Are you really with the Resistance?"

"When they pay me to be."

"Then you truly are crazy."

Poe turns to give him a look. "Us Bounty Hunters prefer 'opportune'." 

"I see little difference." Naka Iit leans back in his seat, picking at an incisor with one clawed finger. "I owe you, my madman friend. Beyond just picking you out of the desert, I owe you most thankfully. I will intercede with Ohn Gos. One way or another, we will get you off Jakku."

"I'm grateful," Poe grunts out, hiding his relief.

"Grateful. What use have I for the gratitude of a madman?" Naka replies, but he smiles as he hisses it.

\---

 Finn and Rey may not be able to see through the grates in the freighter floor, but sound carries easily enough, especially when the voices above them carry loudly in anger.

"Han Solo! You're a dead man."

"Bala-Tik! What's the problem?"

"The problem is we loaned you fifty thousand for this job. I heard you also borrowed fifty thousand from Kanjiklub."

"You know you can't trust those little freaks. How long have we known each other?" Finn crawls farther along the hidden underbelly of the ship, peering up through a crack in the floor above them, spotting several blasters and thermo scanners as well. If any of them decide to flip one of those on, they would be found out in a second.

"They have blasters, lots of them," he hisses back at Rey, who nods in acknowledgement, hiding her discomfort and fear at the situation admirably.

"We want our money back now!" Bala-Tik says, his rolling voice harsh and demanding.

"You think hunting Rathtars is cheap? I spent that money!"

"Kanjiklub wants their investment back too."

"I told you I never made a deal with Kanjiklub!"

"Tell that to Kanjiklub." Suddenly the door at the other end of the hall opens and Finn and Rey quickly crawl over to that side to listen in there.

"Tasu Leech! Good to see you." The person Solo says this to responds in a language Finn cannot understand, and is about to go back to the side he can understand when Rey whispers a translation by his ear.

"Wrong again, Solo. It's over for you and your associate." Finn makes a mental note to ask her where she learned how to speak whatever that was later.

"Boys, you're both going to get what I promised. Have I ever not delivered for you before?" More incomprehensible alien speak follows Solo's inquiry.

"Yes. Twice." Rey translates.

There's a long pause before Solo replies. "What was the second time?"

"Your game is old Solo. There's no one in the Galaxy left for you to swindle. Nowhere left for you to hide." Another pause and then the man's rolling voice is heard again. "That BB unit. The First Order is looking for one just like it. And two fugitives." Rey and Finn both inhale sharply at this and pray Solo won't give them away to further his own cause.

"First I've heard of it," Solo replies drily, and Rey smiles weakly at Finn in relief.

"Search the freighter!" Finn looks to Rey with panic in his eyes, trying to convey the need for a plan. Rey bites her lip and closes her eyes in concentration, then lights up, squeezing Finn's wrist in her excitement.

"If we close the blast doors in the corridor we can trap both Gangs!" Finn nods and follows her down the hallway to a large, ugly fuse box.

"You can close them from here?" Finn asks, and Rey nods, running her hands over the fuses.

"Resetting the fuses should do it." Rey twists two of the fuses on the panel in front of her, sending a shudder through the freighter as the lights dim to a faint red and hydraulics activate in a whoosh of steam.

"Oh no."

"Oh no 'what'?" Finn asks warily.

"Wrong fuses," Rey utters, a distant growl making both of them crawl away from the fuse box in a panic, blaster fire not helping sooth their fear in any way, especially once the screaming starts.

"That was a mistake."

" _Huge,"_ Rey agrees vehemently. They continue to crawl down the shafts under the floors until they reach the grate Solo let them in through, and Rey pushes it out of the way to slip upwards through the opening, Finn following close behind her. "So, what do they look like?" A roar comes from the hallway adjacent to them and a Rathtar barrels into view, tentacles waving around wildly, grasping for them as it slides closer on its trail of slime and slobber.

"Like that!" Finn exclaims as they take off running down the hall, trying to get as far away from the creature behind them as possible while trying to find the corridor back to the hangar bay and the  _Millennium Falcon_ . "This way."

"Are you sure?" Rey asks. Finn opens his mouth to say yes, when a slimy tentacle wraps around his waist and pulls him backwards, his reply turning into a strangled shout.

"No! No, Finn!" He can hear Rey's boots thudding against the grated floors as she runs after them, screaming, until the monster pulls him too far away from her. He's not sure why the Rathtar doesn't just eat him, why it insists on dragging him along like a toy, although he probably should be grateful. He pushes fiercely against the thing looped around his waist, trying his hardest to get it off of him but it won't budge.  Suddenly a door behind him closes, snapping the tentacles off and letting him fall to the floor with a thud, and Finn immediately focuses on shoving the slimy tentacle still holding tight around him to the ground, wriggling wildly to get it off his legs when Rey finds him.

"It had me! But the door..."

"That was lucky," Rey replies, patting his shoulder. He lets the brief touch ground him, calming his racing heart despite the adrenaline that pumps through him. He takes a few deep breaths, then starts down a corridor, relieved when it does in fact lead to the hangar and runs to the  _Millennium Falcon_ with Rey at his heels. Han Solo is already halfway to the ship, with no sign of either Gang that was so intent on ending him beforehand, meaning the Rathtars were still on the loose and hopefully too busy with them to find their way into the hanger.

"Han!" Rey calls out. The man turns, made incredibly difficult by the Wookie precariously balanced on his shoulder, and points at her.

"You shut the door behind you," he says, and then points to Finn. "And you, take care of Chewie!" Finn flounders as the mass of the Wookie is shifted unceremoniously onto his shoulder, and he tries to adjust accordingly while getting way too many tufts of hair in his mouth. Han runs into the Falcon, sliding into the cockpit, with Rey following immediately behind him. Finn spits the hair out of his mouth, shuddering at the grainy texture on his tongue while he lays Chewbacca down on a cot along the wall. The Wookie keeps howling in pain, rather dramatically given the fact that the blast only grazed his flesh, his thick hair blocking the worst of it. Finn dabs at the wound with an antiseptic cloth he finds in one of the med kits and startles when the Wookie grabs his throat as he howls in pain.

"Chewie, come on!" Finn huffs exasperatedly, pushing at the Wookie's arm so he can finish cleaning the wound. Once he can see pinking skin under matted fur instead of blood red he reaches behind him for a roll of clean white bandages with one hand, the other busy keeping clawed fingertips from brushing his throat enough to scratch at his skin. When he gets the bandages, it becomes a struggle to get them onto the injury, the Wookie struggling so much the wound starts to reopen, causing Chewie to howl even more and making Finn fear for his life again. "I need help with this giant hairy thing!" the Wookie growls and pulls him closer by the neck, scaring BB-8, who had come to Finn's aid. "Stop that Chewie!" he tries to send an apologetic look to BB-8, the droid cowering behind a table and making distressed beeps.

"If you hurt Chewie, you're going to deal with me!"

"Hurt him?" Finn asks incredulously, still trying to get a bandage wrapped all the way around the Wookie's thickly muscled, incredibly hairy arm. "He almost killed me six times!" The Wookie's hand tightens minutely around his throat, and he worries that there might be bruising later. "Which is fine," he mutters hoarsely. After a few more minutes of struggling he gets the bandage wrapped firmly and securely, the way he remembers from medical training, something he'd always sort of enjoyed with the way it was calming and methodical, and moves as far away from the grumbling Wookie as possible, rubbing his neck carefully. Solo walks in with Rey behind him, nudging BB-8 out of the way with his foot to check on Chewie, who whines pathetically at him.

"Don't say that, you did great. You just rest." Han pats his companion's arm, then turns to Finn who sits down by a table with a Holo-chess board on top of it. "Good job kid."

Finn smiles a little, unused to praise that actually sounds like a compliment, used to Phasma's "adequate" s and "you performed decently" s. "Thanks," he replies, leaning forward slightly and accidently activating the chess set, making Chewbacca sit up in interest only to relax backwards with a grumble when Finn manages to turn it off after a bit of fumbling.

 "So, fugitives, huh?"

"The First Order wants that map," Finn replies with a shrug.

"Finn's with the Resistance," Rey adds, and Solo looks back at him with a slight frown. "I'm just a scavenger." Solo then looks down at BB-8, who beeps enthusiastically at him, rolling back and forth as if dying to do something.

"All right, let's see what you've got." BB-8's head swivels back to look at Finn who gives them an encouraging nod.

"Go ahead BeeBee."

The droid beeps happily and opens one of their panels to let a projector out, the room begins to fill with the soft blue glow of a Holo, stars and planets hovering in the air around them in a mimicry of what Finn had seen when he and Poe were in open space, fighting their way out of the  _Finalizer_ . Something doesn't seem right though, and the system is one Finn has no memory of; every star, sun, and planet a mystery.

"This map is not complete, it's just a piece," Solo says, disappointment leaking into his voice. "Ever since Luke disappeared people have been looking for him."

"Why did he leave?" Rey asks, coming to perch on the arm of Finn's chair.

"He was training a new generation of Jedi," Solo begins, regret and pain leaking into his voice in increments. "One boy, an apprentice, turned against him, destroyed it all. Luke felt responsible, he just walked away from everything."

"Do you know what happened to him? Does anyone?" Finn asks hesitantly, not wanting to push the man just to satisfy his curiosity.

"A lot of rumors; stories," Solo replies, walking through the constellations as he talks. "People who knew him best think he went looking for the first Jedi Temple."

"The Jedi were real?" Rey asks, awed. Han gives her a half smile, then inclines his head almost imperceptibly.

"I used to wonder about that myself. I thought it was a bunch of mumbo jumbo. a magical power holding together Good and Evil, the dark and the light." He pauses here, shaking his head as if he still can't quite believe it. "The crazy thing is, it's true. The Force, the Jedi- all of it. It's all true." Finn and Rey exchange a look of awed disbelief while Han pulls himself out of his inner turmoil, an alarm beeping in the cockpit. Chewbacca rises to help, but Han eases him with a hand on his uninjured shoulder. "No, you rest." He turns to Finn and Rey next. "You want my help? You're getting it. We're going to see an old friend; she'll get your droid home. This is our stop." He hurries into the cockpit after that, Rey following immediately behind. Finn takes a breath and sighs as he sinks back in his seat, patting BeeBee's head when they beep worriedly at him. "I'm alright BeeBee. Don't you worry, we'll get you home and be back with Poe in no time." Finn stands, refusing to think any differently as he walks into the cockpit, a tiny ray of hope blooming in his chest.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that got really long... I enjoyed adding the bits with Poe from the book though, and leaving Finn to do his own thing, including giving BB-8 a nickname. I lowkey ship skysolo so I'm sorry if that kinda bled into my writing a bit.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this took so long :(

The planet Solo has taken them to is more beautiful than any other Finn can conjure up in his memory, miles and miles of lush green interspersed with clean, sparkling water. In all of the training simulations he had undergone, all of the systems he had learned about out of necessity, no one had been as alive and healthy as this one is, being either covered in snow and ice, dull and dying or already a warzone. A sniffle from in front of him has him peering around the co-pilots chair to look at Rey, a tear sliding down her slack-jawed face, eyes wide with disbelief.

"You alright kid?" Solo asks, while Finn squeezes her arm, a part of him completely understanding what's going through her mind.

"I didn't know there was this much green in the whole galaxy," She replies, her voice soft with awe, never taking her eyes off of the landscape surrounding then. Han watches her for a moment, mouth set in a thin line of contemplation, then angles the  _Falcon_ 's nose down for an easy, smooth landing on a patch of ground between a verdant evergreen forest and a glassy lake. Finn's eyes dart around rapidly as they land, trying to take in as much as he can, from the rolling hills to the ornately built castle dominating the centre of the landscape around them, wondering which species had made it, given that architecture was not one of the focuses of the First Order's stormtrooper education program. Once he steps outside of the  _Falcon_ he doesn't know what sense to focus on first, completely overwhelmed by it all; the colour he had once found only when his fellow 'troopers had taken off their helmets is now everywhere, the cool breeze feels amazing on his skin, and the air is like nothing he's ever breathed in before, used to the recycled air of bases and star destroyers, not even the dry desert air of Jakku compares to this. Underneath it all is the most amazing smell, fresh and clean, a mixture of the greenery around them and the lake water ahead of them, a smell he finds strangely familiar- the jacket. Buried under the scent of motor oil and desert sand, fresh air and clean earth clung to Poe's jacket, speaking of his home perhaps, or even the resistance base; either way, the smell adds to his admiration of the planet around them, and he pulls Poe's jacket a little tighter around himself.

\---

After the first nightmare sends him bolting upwards screaming in pain, making him hit his already pounding head against the crates he's hiding amongst, Poe gives up on sleeping silently. He couldn't give up on sleep entirely, because he's just so kriffing tired. He hasn't gotten a decent nights sleep in four days, plagued with nightmares, headaches, and the ghost of Kylo Ren's memory in his mind. He sighs, and strips off his long-sleeved over shirt along with his plain white undershirt, stained patchy yellow from sweat and reluctantly rolls it up after shrugging his over shirt back on, stuffing it in his mouth and tying it up in a tight double-knot behind his head, cringing as the taste of heated salt and sand dances across his tongue. He rests his head back on his arms, already sore from how long he's been using them as a pillow, and drifts off into a fitful sleep.

He wakes up twice more, his screams muffled by the shirt securely tied around his mouth although his head does strike the crates again both times. As grateful as he is that Ohn Gos is willing to smuggle him back to the Resistance under the pretense of delivering supplies, the storage room is far from the most comfortable place he's slept, and that's including the time he'd had a run in with Mandalorians that left him hiding in a cave on Felucia for three weeks. Once he's accepted that he will not be sleeping any longer, he sits up and digs through the tiny crate of food Gos had hidden rations in for him, gulping down water greedily, then gorging on relatively fresh fruit and bits of cheese for breakfast, the best food he's had since he left D'Qar. 'Finn would love this' he thinks, remembering the way his friend's eyes had lit up at his first taste of dried fruit, and the warm exuberance of his broad smile. It's when Poe drifts into thinking about how good it feels to be on the receiving end of those smiles that he admits he's gone on Finn. It's been all too easy to fall for him; the kid is all warm smiles, kindness, and strength- despite or perhaps because of his life at the hands of the First Order- with an enthusiasm for new things Poe hasn't felt since he was a teenager. Finn is beautiful. Poe sighs as heavily as he can without being loud- step one is admitting you have a problem, step two is never ever telling your friend with a serious lack of normal life experience that you may be a little in love with him; it feels too much like taking advantage. Poe is halfway through another sigh when the ship shudders out of lightspeed, slowing measurably until it lands with a loud thump and a ship-wide shake that Poe would have been able to avoid if he was piloting the freighter. Soft early-morning sunlight filters through the slowly opening cargo bay door, and Poe revels in its gentleness, too used to being woken by the harshness of Jakku's sun. He slips out of the freighter and onto the Resistance's delivery pad, taking a few moments to breathe in the fresh, non-recycled air and the beauty of a blue sky and fields of green, not quite as welcoming as the jungles of Yavin IV, but safe and familiar. Once he's taken his fill Poe heads towards the base; he has a ship to check on and a General to talk to.

\---

The castle looms above them, spectacular in its size and the intricate carvings above the doorways, the step-like sides of it making it look like someone could climb all the way to the top, and be able to see all of the blue and green that the planet has to offer for miles and miles.

"What are we doing here again?"

"We're gonna get your droid to a clean ship. Do you think it was luck that Chewie and I found the _Falcon_ ? If we could get it on our scanners, you can bet the First Order isn't far behind." Han claps a hand on Finn's shoulder, a knowing look in his eye that says he hasn't forgotten what they talked about in the  _Falcon_ . "If you want to get BeeBee-Ate to the Resistance, Maz Kanata's our best bet."

"We can trust her, right?" A part of him knows Han wouldn't have come to someone he didn't trust, but the whole getting chased by the Frist Order thing makes anxiety roil in his gut, especially since he knows that getting caught will be worse than death; no one just leaves the First Order and gets away with it.

"Relax kid. She's run this watering hole for a thousand years," Han replies. "Maz is a bit of an acquired taste, so let me do all the talking and whatever you do, don't stare."

"At what?" Finn and Rey ask in unison.

"Any of it," Solo replies emphatically. When the heavy doors slide open, the first thing Finn thinks is that the First Order would  _despise_ this place; and not just for the various criminal activities like maiming, stabbing, gambling, and scheming taking place, but because everything is so wonderfully chaotic and disorderly- Finn likes it for that alone. Han leads the way through the crowd, pushing and cajoling people out of the way- the noise and strange music overwhelm Finn more than the crowd seems to- until they stop behind a tiny figure setting a tray on the bar. The figure whips around, gray hat almost sliding from her hairless sienna scalp, her wide eyes narrowing behind large goggles when she looks at Solo.

"Han Solo!" She shouts, her voice much louder than Finn expected from such a diminutive person.

"Oh boy," Solo mumbles, just loud enough for Finn and Rey to hear him. "Hey Maz." Solo waves back at the small woman as she stalks up to them, the crowd having both gone quiet and made themselves scarce. Once she smirks at Han, the place goes back to how it was, the momentary distraction not worth it.

"Where is my boyfriend?"

"Chewie is working on the  _Falcon_ ," Solo replies, Maz nodding in acknowledgment.

"That's one sweet Wookie. I'm so sorry," she says, turning to look at a startled Rey and Finn.

"For what?" Rey asks cautiously.

"Whatever trouble he's dragged you in to," Maz replies. "Come! Sit! I can't wait to see what you have for me this time." They follow her out of the main hall to a quieter room in the back, drawing many stares, but none that linger as far as Finn can tell. The room Maz takes them to is smaller than the main Cantina, with only a few patrons and large tables covered in more food then Finn could comprehend. Maz sits them down at the centre table, telling them to eat whatever they like, and Finn doesn't quite know where to start so he grabs a large plate of whatever is closest to him; ending up with what he assumes is the hydrated forms of the colourful dried fruits Poe had found in the rations kit, meat that wasn't overcooked and glazed in something sweet, and several flaky things with sweet jelly or rich meaty centres. He tries not to scarf everything down as quickly as possible, remembering what Poe told him, but fails, choking once or twice and having to take a sip of a sweet, tangy drink he didn't remember being placed by his arm. Once he starts to feel full he slows down and turns to look at Rey, who is still wolfing down food like she hasn't eaten in days, and Finn's brow wrinkles as he realizes how true that thought might be. Maz gets excited when Han explains what they need help with, leaning forward in her chair with an enthusiastic smile.

"A map leading to the First Jedi Temple! To Skywalker himself! I've never given up hope for him."

"Well, that's good to hear, because I have a favor to ask," Solo says, and Maz nods with a knowing smirk.

"You need a loan. I heard about the Rathtars, King Prana's not happy." She turns to Rey with soft eyes. "How's the food?"

"So delicious," she mutters through bites.

"I need you to get this droid to the Resistance..." Han cuts in.

"Me?" Maz replies archly.

"... and the loan sounds good too."

"I see you're in trouble," Maz says. "I'll help you find passage- avoid Snoke's hunter squads- but this journey to the Resistance isn't mine to take, and you know it."

"Leia doesn't want to see me," Solo says uneasily, eyes darting to his lap.

"Who can blame her!" Maz exclaims. "But this fight is about more then you and that good woman. Han, go home."

"What fight?" Rey asks, her hunger finally sated.

"The only fight: against the dark side," Maz replies. "Through the ages I have seen Evil take many forms. The Sith. The Empire. Today, it is the First Order. Their shadow is spreading across the Galaxy, we must face them, fight them; all of us."

Finn holds back a snort and shakes his head. "That's crazy, look around. There's no chance we haven't been recognized already, the First Order is probably on their way right-" He breaks off as Maz stares at him intently, adjusting her goggles until her eyes are even larger than they already are. "What?" Finn asks, both surprised and cautious. Maz doesn't reply, instead making her eyes impossibly larger and crawling forward until she could stand right in front of him, looking him deeply in the eyes in a way that made him more nervous than he's been since they came here. "Solo, what's she doing?"

"No idea, but it ain't good," Solo replies with a shrug.

"I've lived for one thousand years’ son. Long enough to see the same eyes in different people." She sinks back and adjusts her eyes to their normal size, allowing Finn to relax. "I'm looking at the eyes of a man who wants to run. But are you running away or are you running towards something?" Finn thinks of the First Order, thinks of the pain of Slip's death and how much he needs to get away. Then he thinks of Poe, thinks of his bright smile when he isn't trying to hide it, thinks of the warmth of his calloused palm when their fingers are linked tightly together, and how safe he felt when he woke up in his arms.

"Both, I think," Finn replies quietly, Rey turning to him with a confused frown.

"Finn? What is she talking about?"

"I'm not really part of the Resistance Rey." Finn sighs heavily when she cringes away from him, looking betrayed. "I'm not a hero. I'm just a Stormtrooper that was lucky enough to find a pilot. Like all of them I was taken from a family I'll never know, and raised to do one thing. But in my first battle I made a choice, I wasn't going to kill for them. So I ran. I took Poe with me and I ran, and I found you. When I told you I was with the Resistance you looked at me like no one ever had, and I wanted so badly to be what you thought you saw. I'm sorry, I was so ashamed of what I'd been, what I'd done. But I'm done with the First Order and I'm never going back." Rey is quiet, processing what she's just heard, while Han pats his shoulder in an awkwardly reassuring way. Rey looks a little hurt and ready to bolt, so he blurts out, "Come with me? We'll get BeeBee-Ate back to the Resistance and then Poe can get us away from the First Order. So, come with me? Please?"

"Finn, I can't. My family... I've already been away from Jakku too long. I just can't, I'm sorry," Rey says, tears falling from apologetic eyes as she gets up from the table and runs from the room, BB-8 following on her heels with concerned whistles. Finn gets up to follow her, but Maz reaches out and stills him with a shake of her head.

"This is something she needs to discover alone."

\---

Rey runs until she reaches an empty corridor, panting a little from the mixture of crying and exertion, feeling hurt from Finn lying to her and anger at herself for upsetting him, the sadness on his face when she said she was leaving him clear in her mind. It is then that she makes out the voice of a little girl, screaming the word "No" over and over again, and starts following it unconsciously, the girl's voice getting closer as Rey treads lightly down a set of stairs until she comes upon a door and the screaming stops. The door opens with a click, and Rey enters the room, drawn into it without knowing why when she reaches a non-descript wooden box. Something in the back of her mind tells her to open it, and so she does, sliding the rusty latch open slowly, and then pushing the lid back with both hands. A shining cylindrical piece of metal lays atop a jumbled stack of rubbish, something that would have gotten her at least forty portions back on Jakku, and like nothing she has ever seen before, beautiful and strange. She reaches out with one hand, fingers curling around the handle and suddenly she feels a sharp pain in her temples and the room fades around her, turning into a corridor on a ship, a heavy metallic breathing surrounding her, making her feel trapped, before that too fades and is replaced by ground made of sharp rocks, a howl of tremendous pain, and a figure through flames, his metal hand pressing against the dome of a droid's head. This image changes much more fluidly, and Rey finds herself flat on her back with a menacing figure over her, her clothing soaked by the rain pelting down around her, until a beam of red cuts through the figure and it falls, leaving her at the mercy of a man in a metal mask, power flowing off of him and the figures behind him in intense waves. She stumbles backwards into a barren, snowy forest, a man's voice calling out her name as the red beam returns, the man in the mask determined to maim, to kill. This time as she darts through the trees she finds herself on familiar dry sand, and the girl's voice has returned, alongside an image that rests foggily in a far corner of her memory. "No! Come back!" the girl, a copy of herself, Rey realizes. Unkar Plutt pulls on her arm as she watches the ship take off into the sky, carrying her family with it.

"Quiet girl!"

"No!" Young Rey cries, voice fading as the sand does, and Rey momentarily feels blind, her eyes seeing nothing, but an incredible feeling of power surrounding her, and a voice that whispers to her.

"These are your first steps."  When Rey can see again she's back in the hallway she started in, resting back on her arms on the ground, tears falling from her eyes as she tries to catch her breath. Light footsteps catch her attention and she looks up to see Maz approaching her slowly, carefully like Rey might fall apart if approached too quickly.

"What was that?" She asks, then realizes Maz probably hadn't seen any of what she had, and stands quickly. "I shouldn't have gone in here."

"That lightsaber was Luke's," Maz says, Rey wondering how she knew. "And his father's before him. And now it calls to you." Maz's voice almost sounds awed and Rey is quick to shake her head.

"I have to get back to Jakku."

"Han told me," Maz replies, lifting her goggles from her eyes; and Rey thinks she looks odd, her eyes much smaller than they seem and surrounded by wrinkled imprints from the goggles. "Dear child, I see your eyes; you already know the truth. Whoever you're waiting for on Jakku, they are never coming back." Rey feels a tear glide down her cheek at the hurt the truth sends in a pang through her chest. "But someone still could."

"Luke?"

"The belonging you seek is not behind you, it is ahead. I am no Jedi, but I know the Force. It flows through and surrounds every living thing. Close your eyes." Maz's eyes fall shut, a serenity falling over her wrinkled countenance. "Feel it. The light... it's always been there. It will guide you." Rey feels nothing but confusion and a fear that makes her feel young in a way she hasn't for most of her life. "The saber, take it." Rey shakes her head before the words fully process, stepping away from Maz.

"I'm never touching that thing again! I don't want any part of this." Rey runs past Maz, up the stairs and through the Cantina, barely noticing the doors sliding open to let her out of the Castle and into the open air. She doesn't notice her surroundings give way to trees and hard-packed forest earth, trying her hardest to get away from the swirling sandstorm of fear and confusion choreographing a chaotic dance in her mind, wishing desperately that running would eventually get her back to what is easy and familiar.

\---

"So, what is it you run to child?" Finn turns to Maz with a weak smile as she wanders into the room, the smile fading when she shakes her head in answer to his silent question about Rey.

"We were attacked by the First Order when we left Jakku, and I had to leave my friend behind. He told me to go to the Resistance, that he would meet me there. So, I have to go there first, to see if he made it and bring BeeBee back to him, I've been kinda worried, but if we could escape a First Order star destroyer together than I have to believe he could've made it off Jakku all right."

Maz smiles gently at him, “He must be very important for you to push your desire to run away aside for him."

"He was my first real friend," Finn replies, smiling softly. "He helped me escape the First Order and kept me safe on Jakku. He held my hand when I needed comfort and let me eat all of our dried fruit just because I liked it. I wouldn't be alive if it wasn't for him."

"You must miss him terribly, with how much you seem to love him," Maz says, patting Finn's arm. Finn's nose scrunches up at the word love, it isn't something he's ever given much thought, outside of how much he cared for Slip. Love isn't mentioned in the First Order beyond it being a weakness and a distraction, definitely grounds for reconditioning. Finn knows that he cares about Poe, so much so that his absence makes Finn's heart hurt to think about and that when he was with Poe it felt like a missing part of him began to fill in, different from the bright happiness that fills his heart when he's around Rey, though that is no less important. He thinks about how Poe's smile makes his heart race and how safe he makes him fell and figures that it must be love. 

"Yeah, I do," Finn replies. A sudden scream from outside the Castle has Finn whipping around and darting to the nearest window, looking up towards the sky in time to see a giant red beam shooting across the sky- the First Order's greatest weapon. Soon it seems the screams are everywhere, and it isn't just the occupants of Maz's Cantina Finn hears, there are screams of pain and fear echoing in his mind, accompanied by a crippling pain in his chest that sends him to the floor as the beam splits, hitting an entire system, planet by planet, millions of lives extinguished in seconds, leaving behind a profoundly painful emptiness.

"You alright Big Deal?" Han asks, crouching beside Finn with a hand on his shoulder. Finn looks up at him, the despair of an entire system in his eyes, and shakes his head rapidly.

"It was the New Republic. The First Order, they've done it, they've destroyed the Hosnian System." Maz looks at Finn with a mixture of concern and intrigue.

"Follow me," she says, and then leads Han and Finn down to the storage room Rey had found, darting in to grab Luke's lightsaber from its resting place. "I've had this for ages, I kept it locked away."

"Where'd you get that?" Solo asks.

"A good question, for another time," Maz replies, holding it out to Finn. "Take it! Find your friend." Finn takes it with awe, the surprise of being given such a sacred artefact, distracting him from the lingering pain and confusion he had just felt. He has only seen pictures of weapons like these, and he can practically feel the age and power through the saber's hilt, and he hopes he will be able to wield it. Blaster fire rumbles through the Castle, making Maz curse. "Those beasts, they're here." She leads the way back up the stairs and out of a fresh gaping hole in the Cantina, hardly looking shaken by her home crumbling around her.

"Chewie, come on!" Solo cries out, Finn going to follow him, but being pulled back by his arm.

"Rey and BeeBee-Ate need you!" Maz shouts over the sound of TIE Fighters and blaster fire.

"I need a weapon!" Finn cries back, wanting the comforting grip of a blaster.

"You have one!" Maz replies, shaking the arm holding the lightsabre. Finn looks at it consideringly, then presses down on the button with his thumb, the blue blade opening smoothly with a hum that sounds like coming home. He nods to Maz and takes off into the battle, quietly hoping this saber would be enough. He cuts his way through a few 'troopers, still unsure of himself, but the movements came to him almost naturally, not quite the same as when he trained with the mace, but almost like instinct ingrained in every stroke and thrust of the blade.

"TRAITOR!" He turns around at the voice, familiar in a way that's painful- Nines. Finn turns to look at him, obviously promoted and bearing a different designation, but it's still him. Nines throws his shield and pike away dramatically, pulling his riot control baton off of his belt and spinning it, advancing towards Finn with the intent to kill. Finn blocks the first strike easily, and the next ones as well, but he almost can't keep up with Nines' ferocity, the same way it had been in training when he was sure Nines was going to kill him- exercise or not- except this time Finn isn't fast enough to get the better of him, new as he is to the weapon in his hands and he watches with dismay as the blue blade disappears into the hilt and falls to the ground beside him, nowhere to go as Nines prepares his last, fatal strike. 

The blaster shot comes out of thin air, hitting Nines square in the stomach and flipping him over in the air. Finn's breath hitches and he feels almost sorry for Nines, wondering how Zeroes would do without any of his squad members, then closes that part of himself off, allowing Han to help him up.

"You okay, Big Deal?"

"Yeah, thanks," Finn replies.

"Don't move," an electronic voice says from behind Finn, soon joined by a squadron of Stormtroopers, blasters pointed at the three of them. The 'troopers strip them of their weapons then gesture for them to keep their hands in view, the leader talking into a comm on his wrist. "TK-338, we have targets in custody." Distantly, Finn hears ship engines that differ from the ones in the TIEs, and given the way the Stormtroopers are reacting to them, it must be some much needed back-up.

"It's the Resistance," Han says as a whole squadron of X-Wings and other attack craft break through a cloud over the water, immediately carving a place in the battle, taking out ships and 'troopers left and right. One particular X-wing painted black and orange swoops in dangerously low, right over the treetops, firing blast after blast, and accurately hitting nine marks out of every ten, and the ones that miss disabling a piece of First Order equipment, not one of the Pilot's shots wasted. Finn scrambles to pick up his weapon as the Pilot works magic in the sky, their ship swooping and rolling in the air with a type of precision and art that Finn has never seen before, taking out fighter after fighter.

"That's one helluva pilot!" Finn whoops, and feels more than hears an answering exclamation, accompanied by a soft, familiar presence that settles at the back of his mind comfortingly, settling there as if it had never gone. "Poe," Finn says, barely more than a sigh.

"Yeah," Solo yells from behind him. "How about you appreciate the maneuvers behind cover before you get your admiring self shot?" Finn chuckles and nods, allowing Han to lead him to cover, aiming a blaster he finds on the ground at two straggling 'troopers, scanning the battlefield for more when his gaze is caught by a figure stumbling out of the forest, something long curled up in his arms. Once the figure gets closer to a waiting Imperial Shuttle, the bundle in his arms develops features and his heart stops when he realizes who it is.

"REY!" Finn runs, ignoring the fire of retreating Stormtroopers, the gouges in the dirt from blaster fire, and the noises of the battle raging above him, nothing matters but getting to Rey. He reaches the shuttle as it's taking off, and is forced to watch helplessly as it flies further and further away from him, tears of frustration running down his cheeks.

"No, no, no, no... Rey. REY!" Once the shuttle disappears from sight the rest of the First Order seems to follow, and the once beautiful landscape becomes a silent wasteland in the aftermath. Finn runs over to Han, who seems to be waiting for something; distracted. BB-8 rolls up to them, beeping sadly at Finn, who kneels to pet the droid on the head, his little friend leaning into him supportively. "Did you see that? He took her, he  _took_ her, she's gone."

"Yeah, I saw it," Han replies as a ship touches down in front of them, the man almost rising on tiptoes to peer into the ship as soldiers filter out of it, until a woman appears at the top of the ramp, looking at Han indecipherably. Finn can feel the power and confidence that exudes from the woman, similar to Phasma's presence, but without the underlying current of wariness he is used to, replacing it with healthy respect. This woman feels comfortable to him, like he could put his faith in her and it would be returned with safety and trust; he finds that he likes her before she utters a word. She walks down the gangplank with the posture of Royalty, her stern gaze never turning from Solo, even when a strange gold droid with one red arm steps in between them.

"Goodness. Han Solo! It is I, See-Threepio. You probably don't recognize me because of the red arm." The droid turns to the woman behind him with a stiff wave of his bent arms. "Look who it is! Did you see who-" The droid cuts himself off when the woman gives him a pointed look. "Oh, eh, excuse me Princess... General. I'm sorry." The droid shuffles awkwardly away from them, tapping BB-8 with its foot. "Come along BeeBee-Ate, they're waiting." Finn watches as the General and Solo appraise each other, both of them searching for something in the other with their eyes.

"You changed your hair," Solo says, breaking the silence.

"Same jacket," the woman returns, her voice a bit husky, but not unpleasant.

"No, new jacket," Han replies jokingly, as Chewie pushes past him to give the General a hug that she returns with a soft smile. "I saw him. Leia I saw our son, he was here." Solo seems suddenly urgent and Finn grows uncomfortably aware that this conversation is not something he is meant to hear. The General sighs and closes her eyes, the sternness falling from her face and becoming regret, silence once more falling over them. Suddenly she nods and gestures to her troops to go back to the ship, looking back at Han one more time before she disappears from sight. Chewie howls at him then, pointing towards the  _Falcon_ and leading him with a firm but gentle hand on his back towards the ship. Finn looks back at Solo's dejected face, and wishes he knew how to help, but knowing he could no more teleport Rey onto the  _Falcon_ then he could sort out Han's marital problems. Thinking of Rey makes the pang of her loss ring fresh in his mind, and he sighs when he sits down in the cockpit, BB-8 rolling up beside him and beeping with a tone of mourning at first, then excitement.

"You must be happy to go home huh? We're going to get to see Poe... Poe! He can help us get Rey back!" BeeBee beeps and whistles excitedly, and Finn feels hope slink back into his heart alongside the eager anticipation of seeing Poe again, the world seeming a little brighter once more.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Force sensitive Finn is life! I'm so excited to get to the big reunion scene next chapter, which will hopefully be up sooner than this one was... also I introduced Rey's POV in this chapter because I will be using it in later chapters as well :)  
> Side note: Has anyone seen Deadpool yet? I went with my bf for valentines and it was freaking amazing! I was soooo happy with the way they did it, it was so much like the comics!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow this was a long one to write, there was just so much that had to fit in here! Hopefully it paid off and you guys like it!

D'Qar is almost as beautiful as Takodana was, the air just as fresh, and the trees twice as large, crowding against each other so densely you almost couldn't see any paths between them; but the landscape is marred by the large metal structure that comprises the resistance base and the flat expanse of tar serving as a runway for the x-wings. Finn watches from the transparisteel of the _Falcon'_ s cockpit as they land, carefully soaring over the trees to the runway, his eyes peeled for a specific black one, and once he spots it he practically bounces out of his seat and dashes for the boarding plank. "C'mon BeeBee!" The droid beeps excitedly as they follow after Finn, keeping pace with the human easily. He looks around to see where the black x-wing landed, craning his neck until he spots it at the far end of the runway, practically sprinting as he sees the pilot getting out. He's no match for BB-8, however, who almost barrels him over in their attempt to get to Poe as fast as possible. Finn's breath catches as Poe removes his helmet, a beaming smile stretching across the Pilot's face when he sees BeeBee barreling towards his legs, kneeling instantly to pat the droid on the head.

"BeeBee-Ate, my buddy! It's so good to see you!" BB-8 beeps and whistles excitedly, and Poe's eyes brighten. "Finn saved you? Where is he?" BB-8 whistles again and finally Poe looks up to see Finn standing not twenty feet away, wringing his hands before just deciding to go for it- launching himself in the Pilot's direction, Poe meeting him halfway in a gripping hug, his arms coming to rest around Finn's shoulders while Finn wraps his around Poe's waist, temporarily lifting him off the ground in his enthusiasm. Finn doesn't let go right away, reveling in the softness of Poe's sweat-damp hair against his cheek, how good he smells, and the warm comfort of his arms; all of his worry for Rey and confusion over the things he's felt since the Hosnian system was destroyed momentarily forgotten. When he does let go, he takes both of Poe's hands in his, the Pilot smiling and intertwining their fingers as Finn leans forward to rest his forehead against Poe's speaking softly.

"Poe Dameron, best Pilot in the Galaxy. I knew it was you! I could feel it." Poe chuckles, the tips of his ears turning red at the compliment, and squeezes Finn's hands.

"Hey buddy. You wouldn't believe how happy I am to see you're all right."

"Me too. What happened Poe? How'd you get here?"

"Well, the First Order goons took off as soon as you flew away so I just asked around for transport and wound up getting picked up in the desert by an itinerant trader, I'll tell you all about it sometime. But what about you? BeeBee-Ate says you saved them."

"Not really, and it wasn't just me." Finn pauses, a slow grin spreading on his face as his eyes twinkle. "Tell you all about it sometime." Poe blinks, taken aback and wondering if Finn actually just flirted with him, when Finn's bending down to wrap his arms around BB-8. "Told you we'd find him BeeBee." The droid beeps in reluctant agreement, bumping against Finn's legs when he straightens up, sandy brown leather stretching with the muscles in his arms.

"Hey! You kept my jacket!" Finn looks down in surprise, almost forgetting that he still has the jacket, then tries to take it off to give it back. "No, no, no, keep it. It suits you." Poe reaches out to fix the jacket back on Finn's shoulders, eyes roving over his form-boy does it ever suit him- and takes Finn's hands again, squeezing. "You're a good man Finn."

"Thanks Poe," Finn replies, the back of his neck growing hot alongside his cheeks, and he dislodges one of Poe's hands to scratch it. He bumps the lightsaber on his belt when he reaches for Poe's hand again, and pulls it off excitedly. "Oh! Poe, I almost forgot, check it out!" He holds out the hilt of the saber to Poe, who gasps with the appropriate awe and reaches out a finger to stroke it, and then looks up at Finn.

"Is that what I think it is?"

"Yep! I even got to use it! Wanna see?"

"Sure buddy," Poe replies, laughing quietly at how excited Finn looks as he waves Poe backwards. Finn takes the lightsaber in both hands and strokes his thumb down the button, the blade emerging with an extended buzz, Finn's eyes closing briefly as he feels the surge of power that comes with it, and then he opens his eyes to see Poe's reaction, the Pilot looking at Finn with an awed expression that makes him feel tingly and a soft smile spread on his face.

"It's not really mine though," Finn says as he shuts the lightsaber off. "I'm holding onto it for...Rey." Finn's face falls as he remembers his friend.

"Finn buddy, what's wrong?" Poe wraps an arm around his shoulders, Finn sighing as his head comes to rest on Poe's shoulder. "Who's Rey?"

"She's the one who piloted the _Falcon_ off Jakku, she's a really great pilot. She's also my friend, BeeBee's too. And they took her Poe. The First Order has her and I need to get her back!"

"Alright buddy, let's go talk to the General, she can help you." Finn nods into the shoulder of the fluorescent orange pilot's uniform Poe gets stuck wearing whenever he uses an x-wing, then steps back, hooking the lightsaber back onto his belt and linking his fingers with Poe's so they can walk to the base together.

\---

 They find General Organa in a large conference room, earnestly conversing with a group of senior Resistance officers, including Admirals Ackbar and Statura, men Poe respects and remembers from the stories his father told him when he was a child. They all turn to the door as he enters the room with Finn, and he clears his throat awkwardly, pulling Finn directly over to the General.

"General Organa. Sorry to interrupt, but this is Finn." Poe gestures to Finn beside him with his spare hand, squeezing Finn's with the other when he tenses under the General's intent gaze. "And he needs to talk to you."

"And I need to talk to him," the General says, taking Finn's open hand in her own with an earnest smile. "That was incredibly brave what you did; renouncing the First Order, saving this man's life, putting yourself at tremendous risk." Poe feels pride in his friend swell with every word the General speaks, fighting the smirk attempting to take over his face.

"Thank you, ma'am, but I'm here to talk about my friend. She was taken prisoner in the clash on Takodana," Finn replies, and the General nods understandingly in response.

"Han told me about the girl. I'm sorry." Finn looks startled, as if he hadn't expected Han to talk about him much. Poe racks his brain for anyway to help Finn, when the thought that his knowledge of the base, something Finn had talked about while they were wandering the desert, might make the Resistance more willing to aid him.

"Finn's familiar with the weapon that destroyed the Hosnian System. He worked on the planet where it's based."

"You worked on the weapon itself?" Leia's excitement is almost palpable.

"No, I'm not an engineer or a physicist; I was just a 'trooper. But there was a tech training course, and they told everyone the purpose of the base. I can't tell you how exactly the weapon functions, the science is beyond my understanding, but I _can_ tell you where it is, or at least where it's controlled from."

"No reason to keep that a secret from the people guarding it," Poe points out smugly, “since Stormtroopers never defect."

"We're desperate for anything you can tell us," Leia says to Finn. "Until the Hosnian System was annihilated we didn't even know a weapon like this existed."

"It's located on the world that serves as the First Order's main base. I'm sure that's where they've taken my friend, I need to get there, fast."

"I'll try to help you," the General replies. "You have my word. I'm sure you understand that because of what happened to the Hosnian System, right now the Resistance has other priorities. But if they happen to coincide..." Leia pauses, as if she knows all too well the urgency to find someone. "Then we'll do our best to find your friend." She finishes, and Finn nods in agreement while she gestures to the nearby officers. "Right now I need you to tell Admiral Ackbar all you know. Anything that you remember about the First Order, no detail is too insignificant. All Right?"

"Yes Ma'am." The Admiral steps forward to talk to Finn but is stopped by the General raising a hand.

"Finn, there was something else I wanted to ask you. About something Han told me." Poe's brow furrows, looking at Finn's equally confused face before turning to the General.

"Yes General?"

"What happened to you when the Hosnian System was destroyed?" Finn's face blanches almost instantly, his eyebrows drawn into a furrow and his lips in a tight line, his hand taking Poe's in a death grip.

"First I heard screaming. I thought it was just the people in the Cantina, but then I realized that the screams were in my head, and then the pain hit. It was stronger than anything I've ever felt before, almost like the whole Galaxy's pain was burning up in my chest, until suddenly it stopped and everything just felt wrong and empty. It was... I've never... I've never been more afraid in my entire life." Poe wraps his arms around Finn tightly, eyeing his friend with concern while turning to the General in confusion. The General looks older than she ever has before, all the lines in her face visible when she sighs heavily.

"I've felt the same thing twice in my life, and the second time was earlier today. I'm so sorry you had to go through that Finn."

"What was it General?" Finn asks, an idea of what it might be loosely formed in the back of his head.

"It was the very thing that flows through each and every one of us, the thing that cotrols the ebb and flow of the universe, the reason you can handle that lightsaber so easily, while others' would not be able to."

“The Force,” Finn says quietly.

“The Force,” General Leia confirms. “What you felt specifically was the Balance being ripped apart by the millions of lives the First Order eradicated.”

"So, I'm like a Jedi?"

"You could be, with training, but not all people sensitive to the Force choose to be. I chose to lead my people for example. The Force is something that will always be with you if you choose to accept it or not. Whether or not you decide to train your abilities is up to you, Finn, and it always will be."

"Thank you General."  The General merely smiles at him, then waves them over to Admiral Ackbar, who stands attentively while waiting for Finn. Before they leave she gives Poe a knowing look, eyes darting down to where Finn's fingers have found his once more, and he shrugs sheepishly while his ears turn red, allowing Finn to drag him along to talk to Ackbar.

\---

Rey wakes slowly, disoriented. When she attempts to lift her arms to scrub at her eyes she finds them held in place by complex restraints, and suddenly panics until she finds herself staring at an unnoticed second occupant of the room. He doesn't move, makes no sound, appears to not even breathe, his unsettling presence distracting Rey as she takes stock of her surroundings, the familiar Imperial metal a world away from the lush forest of Takodana. The last things she remembers are telling BB-8 to get far away, the sounds of battle, a confrontation in the forest... then the mind probe and the pain that came with it. She remembers trying to force it back and the ease with which her efforts were pushed back, a lingering ache settling in the back of her mind.

"Where am I?"

"Does the physical location matter so much?" There is something different in the man's voice than when he had spoken to her in the forest, not quite kindness or sympathy, but something gentler than hostility. "You're my guest." With a casual wave of his hand the restraints on her wrists are released, and she takes the opportunity to slowly rub the ache away, not wanting to make him think he could intimidate her more than he already had. Her legs, she notices, remain restrained.

"Where are the others? The ones who were fighting with me?"

The man sniffs disdainfully. "You mean the traitors, liars, and thieves you call friends? You will be relieved to hear I have no idea." Rey squints doubtfully, unable to tell from his flat tone whether he is lying or not. She observes his calm demeanor, something in her sensing that the wrong word or an undesirous response would set him off. 'Be careful with this man,' she tells herself. He looks up at her suddenly, as if she had spoken aloud, and judging from how well she fared in the forest, she might as well have.

"You still want to kill me," he murmurs.

"That's what happens when you're being hunted by a creature in a mask," Rey replies tactlessly, her scavenger nature getting the better of her. She braces herself for a violent reaction, expects it even, but instead she finds herself looking at his mask less face. There was nothing particularly remarkable about the man's narrow face, despite being almost sensitive in a way; if it wasn't for the intensity of his gaze he could have passed for someone she might have met on the dusty streets of Niima Outpost. But there was that gaze, and whatever lay simmering behind it.

"Is it true?" He asks after a long stretch of silence. "You're just a scavenger?" Rey doesn't respond, embarrassment flushing hot across her neck and shoulders and, as if sensing it, he moves on. "Tell me about the droid."

Rey swallows and relaxes herself to respond. "It's a BB-Unit with a Selenium drive and a thermal hyperscan vindicator, internal self-correcting gyroscopic propulsion system, optics corrected to-"

"I am familiar with general droid technical specifications. I don't need to acquire one: what I want is located in Its memory, a section of a trans-galactic navigational chart. We have the rest, recovered from the archives of the Empire, but we need the last piece. Somehow, _you_ convinced the droid to show it to you. You. A simple, solitary scavenger. How is that?" 

Rey looks away from his intensely questioning gaze, wondering if he discovered this the way he seems to have learned everything else.

"I know you've seen the map," he repeats. "It's what I need. At the moment, it is all I need." When Rey maintains her silence, he almost sighs. "You know I can take whatever I want."

Rey feels her muscles tighten. "Then you don't need me to tell you anything."

"True." He rises, resigned. "I would have preferred to avoid this, but I _will_ take what I need."

She knows that trying to resist him physically would be useless, and most likely result in unpleasantness she prefers not to imagine. So she remains silent and still, her arms held tight to her sides as his hand rises to her face. But this time, when he brushes her mind there is something different there, pushing against him. She strains her mind against the probe, but he pushes aside her clumsy efforts to resist him, investigating her mind with uncomfortable ease, and a soft voice.

"You've been so lonely," he murmurs as he searches for what he needs, Rey's body shaking while her temples throb with the sheer pressure in her mind. "So afraid to leave." His thin lips twist into a sardonic smile. "At night, desperate to sleep, you'd imagine an ocean. I can see it... I can see the island."

Tears stream down her face from her efforts to withstand him, striking out in desperation. But just as on Takodana, her body refuses to respond.

"And Han Solo," he continues relentlessly. "He feels like the father you've never had. A dead end, that vision. I can tell you for a fact, he would have disappointed you." All the rage and terror bottled up inside her boils over the edge as she turns to meet his stare.

"Get-out-of-my-head!"

Her rage only made him lean in closer, enhancing how helpless she feels. "Rey- you've seen the map, it's in there. I am going to take it. Don't be afraid."

Where the strength to defy him comes from, she doesn't know, but if anything, she grows a little stronger. " _I'm not giving you anything_."

"We'll see," is his unconcerned response. He narrows his gaze and his focus, staring her directly in the eyes. Rey meets his gaze unflinchingly, even though looking away would be the more rational thing to do, and glares while trying not to blink. Suddenly his presence halts, pushing against a barrier in her mind and she seizes the opportunity to push him out and away until she realizes, with a startling clarity that she is now in _his_ mind. Stunned at the realization she finds herself inexorably drawn to a pocket of information that appears to be ever present in Kylo Ren's mind.

"You... You're afraid," she hears herself say, her voice clear and strong. "That you will never be as strong as- Darth Vader!" Ren rips his hand away from her as if her skin has burned him, stumbling back from her with confusion etched clearly on his previously inexpressive face. She watches him struggle within his own mind, feeling strong, in control. He moves to leave, then turns at the last second, gesturing towards her restraints with his hand, locking her wrists in place once more before sliding his domed mask over his face. And then, he is gone, leaving Rey to contemplate the power coursing through her, and what exactly it means.

\---

The conference room buzzes with the collective mutterings of what feels to Finn like the entire resistance; orange-suited pilots, admirals with green medal-adorned jackets, and the whirs and beeps of droids filling the room with a wall of sound and the pressing  warmth of bodies. As such, Finn is thankful that the Admiral's questioning kept them close to the main Holotable, with a ring of space between him and the crowd behind him. Poe's hand is starting to feel slick with their combined sweat and Finn lets go briefly to switch hands while the other admirals filter into the room. They pull up the image of the frozen, isolated planet Starkiller base makes its home on, previously unworthy of a hopeful visit from a minor trading ship, but now the focus of the Resistance. Once everyone settles, Poe looks to Admiral Ackbar for acknowledgment, and starts to speak when he gets a nod.

"The scan data from Snap's reconnaissance flight confirms Finn's report." Poe looks to the friendly, bright-eyed pilot across the table from them, gesturing for him to continue.

"They've built a new kind of hyperspace weapon within the planet itself. Something that can fire across interstellar distances in the equivalent of real time." His expression shows his incredulity. "I've had my share of technical training, but I can't even imagine how that's possible."

"I can't either, but those of us assigned to the base heard rumors that it doesn't operate in what we'd call normal hyperspace. It fires through a hole in the continuum that it makes itself. Everybody was calling it 'sub'-hyperspace. That's how it can arrive in moments across a distance like that between the base and the Hosnian System. The amount of energy required to do that is..." Here he pauses, voice dropping as he remembers how it felt watching those beams of concentrated power shoot across the sky and the paroxysm when they hit their targets. "Well, we've seen how much energy is involved. All I know is that it involves a lot of zeroes following the primary number."

"We're not sure how to describe a weapon of this scale," Wexley continues, nodding slowly. "Our people have come up with some ideas regarding the rapid overheating and subsequent implosion of a planetary core, but the mechanism to induce that so far escapes them. "

"It's another Death Star!" One of the oldest officers in the room exclaims, gesturing sharply with a look of horror on his face. Finn and Poe wince in unison, shaking their heads.

"I wish that was the case, Major Ematt," Poe says. "But in analyzing everything Finn has told us and coupling that with the information the Resistance has gathered this is what we're facing." He waves a hand over a nearby control, pulling up the image of the Death Star beside the frozen planet. "This was the Death Star." Poe moves his hand over the table again and the Death Star shrinks to scale, and is dwarfed by the sheer magnitude of the base beside it. "This is what Finn tells us is called Starkiller base." A collective gasp rings through the room, followed by a groan as the realization of the nigh-impossible task ahead of them hits.

"How can they power a weapon of that magnitude?" General Organa asks. Everyone at the table turns to Finn, and he barely restrains himself from flinching. He wasn't a scientist, or an engineer, or a technician. Everything he knows about the technical specs of the base is hearsay, and given how much is riding on this information, he's reluctant to share it.

Leia, sensing his hesitation, is quick to prompt him. "Finn, please speak up."

"I'm not sure of the authenticity of what I've heard or been told." 

"Anything you can tell us is volumes more than anything we know," the General assures him. "Tell us, and let our technical people be the judge of your words."

Finn takes a deep breath, squeezes Poe's hand, then speaks. "When I was stationed on the base, I was rotated to multiple locations around the planet, one was on the side opposite to where the weapon is discharged."

Admiral Statura cuts him off incredulously. "The weapon system is situated on both sides of the planet?"

"Not only is it located on both sides, the system actually runs through the planetary core." Finn waits for the murmurs of disbelief to quiet down before continuing. "As near as I can understand it, enormous arrays of specially designed collectors that use the power of a sun to attract and send dark energy to the containment unit at the core of the planet, where it's held and built up until the weapon is ready to fire."

"Impossible," Admiral Ackbar insists. "Although we know there is more dark energy in the universe than anything else, it is so diffuse that it can barely be detected. Let alone concentrated."

"It can be, and it is," Finn persists despite the niggling discomfort he feels at disagreeing with someone of Ackbar's rank and experience. Admiral Statura seems more willing to believe.

"If the engineering could be worked out," he observes, "one would have access to a nearly infinite source of energy."

"General Hux told us it's the most powerful weapon ever built," Finn replies with a nod. "He said that it can reach halfway across the Galaxy, in real time. Because it doesn't reach _across_ the Galaxy, it reaches _through_ it." Fresh murmurs of dissent start after this and Finn tries to ignore them, his head starting to hurt from trying to explain things he overheard, but didn't understand.

"Okay, it's big and it's impossible. How do we blow it up?" Han asks, his eyes knowing. "There's always a way to do that."

"We have to wait until the technical staff have finished their detailed analysis," Wexley supplies when no suggestions are forthcoming. "Once they've done that we can-"

"We don't have time to wait on analyses and scientific hypotheses,' the General says, cutting him off while Han smirks in the background. "Han's right, we have to act and act _now_."  Finn isn't sure what's more amusing; the General's reluctance to admit that Solo's right, or the quickly hidden surprise in his eyes when she says it. "This is the moment that counts," she continues. "Everything we've fought for is at stake, we don't have time to wait for theories. We have to take out this weapon before it can be used again."

"I can't prove this," Admiral Statura begins, "but for this amount of power to be restrained until it can be released, or fired, there has to be some new, advanced containment field. The question is: what kind of field?"

"I heard it has something to do with the planet's own magnetic field and something else," Finn supplies.

"Yes, yes," Statura mutters, deep in thought. "A planetary magnetic field, even a strong one, wouldn't be enough to contain the amount of energy we've seen deployed. As you say Finn, there must be something else involved. I'm thinking some kind of oscillating field. If it oscillates rapidly enough, much less energy would be required to sustain it than if it was maintained at a steady rate."

"I don't know about that stuff, but the containment and oscillation control systems are located here," Finn says, letting go of Poe's sweaty hand to enlarge part of the planet's surface on the hologram, revealing a large hexagonal structure.

"Excellent Mr. Finn!" Statura exclaims, his gaze travelling around the room at his colleagues. "But disabling this, while a relatively straightforward proposition, would not necessarily destroy the weapon- only render it temporarily unusable until the control system could be rebuilt."

"We'd likely only get one shot at it," Poe adds. "Once the First Order realizes that we know where it is, they'd throw everything they've got into defending it with ships, mobile stations, and long-range detectors. We might never get close to it again."

"Then our first attack _must_ succeed," the General says, turning to Statura. "What do you recommend Admiral?"

"Assuming that my hurried supposition is reasonably correct, the weapon would be at its most vulnerable when, as it were, it is fully-loaded. If the containment field oscillator were somehow destroyed at that moment, it would release the accumulated energy not in a line of fire, but throughout the planetary core where it is being held. If it did not result in the complete destruction of the base, it would at the very least permanently cripple the weapon."

"Maybe even the entire planet on which it's based," Major Ematt adds. An officer appears and hands the General a datapad, and she studies it intensely while a downcast Ackbar speaks up.

"None of this is possible. While the planet may be undefended at present as soon as we make a move to attack the First Order will realize we know the location of the weapon. They will mobilize everything in the vicinity to protect it and their fleet is too large for us to fight our way through. Additionally, despite what Mr. Dameron theorizes, I would wager they have at least a minimal planetary shield in place. Plainly, they have access to the energy needed to support such a defense." Here he looks to Finn, who nods reluctantly in agreement.

"Yes, such a shield does exist."

"The situation could not get any worse," C-3PO mutters. General Organa raises a hand for attention, gesturing to the read-out in her hand.

"According to this we don't have time to study the situation, even if we decided to do so. Our team has detected an enormous quantity of dark energy surging towards the planet Finn has identified for us. That can only mean one thing: they're reloading the weapon. And I think we can all guess what their next target will be."

C-3PO lowers his golden head as much as his stiff neck allows. "I was wrong; it can be worse."

"They may raise their shields, but if we can find a way around them, we can and will hit that oscillator with everything we've got," Poe says, eyeing the downcast expressions around him, and squeezing Finn's hand comfortingly.

"I like this guy," Han says, smiling broadly.

"Any plan is pointless as long as their shields remain in place," Ackbar says, remaining pessimistic. "A proper planetary defense system, as this one is sure to have, will not allow for 'a way past them.' "

"Okay, so we find a way past them," Solo continues, turning to Finn. "Kid, you worked there, whatcha got?" Finn's eyes widen as he thinks back.

"I can do it. Shut down their shields. I-" He nods vigorously, as much to reassure himself as the others. "I know where the relevant controls are located." Then he pauses as realization sets in. "But I have to be there, of course. On the planet, with access to the location."

"I'll get you there," Han says, just as Poe is opening his mouth to offer the same thing.

"Han, how?" The General asks, squinting at the casually cocky expression on Solo's face.

"If I told you, you wouldn't like it," he replies, smirk growing into a broad grin.

"All right, so we disable their shields, take out the containment oscillation controls, and destroy their big gun," Poe summarizes enthusiastically. "Sounds like a plan."

"Let's move!" Admiral Statura calls out, the room buzzing with renewed hope, everyone rushing to one place or another.

"You know I would have taken you in a heartbeat if Solo hadn't offered first, right?" Poe asks Finn, taking up both his hands again.

"Of course," Finn replies with a grin. "But you got bigger things to do, being the best pilot in the galaxy and all. I'm sure they'll need you up in the air to take out the oscillator."

"You know it," Poe says cockily. "All right, I gotta get my X-wing tready. Come see me before you head out, okay?"

"Okay." Poe pulls him into a quick hug before jogging off, and Finn watches until he disappears from sight completely, then shakes his head and goes to find Han.

\---

Adrenaline and fear course through Finn as he rushes to comply with Han's orders, working together with Chewie to get the Falcon ready for departure. He's still desperate to find Rey, of course, but he isn't sure he can get the shields disabled and he has so many people relying on him to get it done. Kriff, Poe's life is on the line if he can't do this.

"Chewie, check the horizontal booster," Han barks out, receiving a growl from the Wookie in response. "I don't care what the onboard readouts say: there's no substitute for a final visual inspection. You know that. Finn, careful with those dentons, they're explosives." Finn gapes at him from the ground, spherical dentons surrounding him and halts in putting them away.

"They are? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Didn't want to make you nervous," Han replies. "When you've finished loading those, go talk to some of those X-wing techs and see if you can scare us up a back-up thermal regulator." Finn nods and finishes putting the dentons away and loads them onto the ship, sneaking away just as Han and General Organa wrap around each other in the embrace of people who have known and loved each other for a long time. It makes Finn think of Poe, so he takes a detour in scouring for a tech, heading to the rows of white, blue, and orange ships, looking for the one painted black. When he finds it, Poe is just climbing down the side of it, and he smiles when he ducks under the ship's nose to spot Finn heading towards him.

 "All ready to go Buddy?" He asks, a hand coming to rest on Finn's shoulder.

"Almost, I just have to get Han a back-up thermal regulator."

"Well, that should be easy enough to find." Poe's hand becomes an arm wrapped around both shoulders as they walk, and Finn smiles at how easy it is to lean into Poe's side. Poe leads them to a group of buzzing technicians next to a scattering of supplies and clears his throat. "Do you think my friend here could get a thermal regulator?"

"Yes sir!" One of the techs chirps, digging around in the boxes behind them and pulling out the part Finn needs.

"Thanks," Finn says, carefully taking the part in the hand not pinned to his side by Poe's body. He lets Poe turn them around so they can walk back to the X-Wing, making sure he has a firm grip on the regulator as BB-8 comes up and whistles something at Poe.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming, go get ready." BB-8 whistles indignantly and bumps his legs before repeating the gesture in a much gentler way to Finn. "Oh I see how it is, Finn's your favourite now?" BB-8 beeps then rolls away.

"Bye BeeBee," Finn calls after the droid, laughing at Poe's mock-betrayed look.

"Well, I guess that's my queue to say goodbye," Poe says, stepping back from Finn and holding his arms out for a hug. Finn wraps his arms around Poe's waist eagerly, nuzzling into the soft curls at the side of his head while Poe's arms come around Finn's shoulders securely. Finn closes his eyes, letting the comfort Poe seems to exude fill him up slowly as he breathes in the scent of sweat and soap that clings to Poe's hair, cataloguing every detail of this in his mind in case one or both of them don't make it back. They stand there like that for several minutes, ignoring the hustle and bustle of the base around them and grounding themselves for what is to come. "All right buddy. I'll see you when this is all over, got it?" Poe asks, stepping out of the embrace and taking Finn's hands.

"Got it," Finn replies firmly. "I love you Poe." Finn leans in and presses his lips firmly to Poe's cheekbone, squeezing the Pilot's hands in his until he leans back again. Poe looks startled, the tips of his ears starting to redden as a smile unconsciously spreads across his face. Finn thinks it just became the nicest smile he's ever seen. "See you later Poe." Finn slowly lets Poe's hands slide from his grip as he walks away backwards, only turning around when he accidentally knocks into a much taller Pilot, glancing back a few times with a bright smile as he heads back to the Falcon, a faint 'See you later Finn' following him.

\---

Rey shifts once more in the newly replaced wrist restraints with a sigh, closing her eyes and leaning her head back, pondering the encounter with Kylo Ren. At first it had been nothing but the same pain she felt on Takodana, and then, it intensified until she tried to resist and _succeeded_ . For a brief instant _she_ had been in _his_ mind, and she still remembers feeling his shock, concern, and finally his retreat. He wasn't quite afraid of her though, more apprehensive, as if she had thrown him badly off balance, and then he left. Now that she thinks about it, he probably left to regroup, which means he will be back, and she'll do anything to avoid his presence in her mind again. So she closes her eyes and racks her brain for a way to get out. If she could push Ren out of her mind and into his own, then what else might she be capable of? Maybe she could use her newfound knowledge of the Force to influence someone much less skilled and untrained in the ways of the Force. Maybe she could use it on the guard posted just inside the front of her cell.

"You!" The guard turns to her, his movements slow and unconcerned, even a little sluggish as if he's bored. She studies him for a few precious seconds, then addresses him as clearly and firmly as she can, reaching out to his mind with the Force. "You will remove these restraints and leave this cell with the door open." The guard continues to stare at her, expression hidden behind his white helmet, but his body language indicating no signs of intimidation. Rey's confidence falters slightly as she shifts in her bonds, trying to force authority into her voice when she repeats her statement. "You will remove these restraints and leave this cell with the door open." Suddenly the stormtrooper advances on her, giving her hope when he stops by the restraints on her left wrist.

"I will tighten these restraints, Scavenger scum." Rey takes a deep breath in, and steadies her mind, her voice calm and cool when she tries again.

" _You will remove these restraints and leave this cell with the door open_."

"I will remove these restraints and leave this cell with the door open," the stormtrooper parrots back. He then works methodically at releasing her shackles, staring at her for a moment before heading for the doorway.

"And you'll drop your weapon!"

"And I'll drop my weapon." The 'troopers gun hits the metal floor with a clatter and Rey lets out a shaky laugh, shocked with herself, but giddy to be free. Or at least, free of this cell. She scoops up the blaster from the floor and peers out of the cell's doorway. True freedom would only come when she was off of this... well whatever she was on. But it is at least a start.

 


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so so so sorry this took forever... it just did not want to be written... I hope it's okay though and you guys like it!

Finn likes travelling in hyperspace; usually. It tends to make him feel relaxed, without the threat of surprise or attack, and allows him to parse out whatever may be bothering him before his destination arrives, like the charmingly goofy smile Poe gave him after Finn's impulsive kiss, for example. This time, Finn's nerves get the better of him, and he finds his thoughts wandering to things he would be better not to dwell on. He sighs and leaves the  _ Falcon _ 's lounge behind, choosing instead to sit in the cockpit with Han and Chewie.

"Han, how are we getting past the shields? I forgot to ask earlier."

"Any kind of defense will be geared toward an attack in force. They shouldn't be prepared for a shingle ship to slip in; it would be suicide," Han replies without lifting his gaze from the controls.

"Now I'm really encouraged," Finn says, deadpan. "And what if they do have defenses against a single ship? How do we get past then?"

"No planetary defense system can be sustained at a constant rate. It would require too much power, and it isn't necessary, so all planetary shields have a fractional refresh rate. Instead of being on constantly, they fluctuate at a pre-determined rate. Keeps anything travelling slower than lightspeed from getting through. Theoretically, a ship could get its nose in when the shield is down, but a second later the shield snaps back up again, and it’s not good for anyone on that ship."

"Okay, I get that. But how are  _ we _ getting in? Without being cut in half by an oscillating shield?"

"Easy," Han replies as if it's the simplest thing in the galaxy. "We won't be going slower than lightspeed."

"We're going to make our landing approach at  _ lightspeed _ ?" Finn exclaims, gaping incredulously at Han. "Nobody's ever done that! At least I've never heard of anyone doing that." Finn couldn't help but look at Han with a mixture of awe and "are-you-crazy", a sentiment shared by Chewbacca, whose growl even Finn can gather the meaning of.

"We're coming up on the system, I'd sit down if I were you" Han says, smiling pleasantly. "Chewie, get ready." Finn scrambles for his harness, wishing he had some very large, soft pads for protection as he clutches his armrests tightly. Chewie groans back at Han in a way that sounds affirmative as Han scans the ship's readouts, and at his gesture the Wookie hovers a hand over his controls.

"And... Now!" Human and Wookie hands fly over the console, supplementing the approach and landing information they have preprogrammed into the  _ Falcon _ 's instruments, Finn's heart clenches as the ship jostles and shudders at the pressure of being forced into maneuvers it was never designed to make, until suddenly they've breached the shields and sunlight breaks through the streaks of starlight produced during lightspeed. Unfortunately, the ride becomes no smoother as the ship continues to slow at an incredible rate, sending them straight towards snow-frosted tree tops in a forest far denser than the one on D'Qar, prompting a yell from Chewbacca loud enough to be heard over the protesting alarms ringing through the cockpit.

"I  _ am _ pulling up!" Han yells as he wrestles with the controls, the ship shuddering as it attempts to straighten and correct itself. The  _ Falcon _ plows through the trees with little ceremony, suddenly pulling up to the displeasure of its pilot. "Any higher, they'll see us!"

Down again the ship goes in an effort to evade detection, trees once again snapping around the  _ Falcon _ 's nose as Chewie fights to keep the ship level and functional while Han's hands fly across the controls and they continue to slow. Until suddenly, the forest provides them with a brake, the tree line splintering into an opening just before a cliff, sending the descending ship into a cloud of puffy white snow until it halts completely, half buried. Chewbacca growls angrily at Han, the man practically snarling in response. "Oh yeah? You try it!" Sparks suddenly erupt from the passageway beyond the cockpit and Chewie goes to handle it, howling vaguely under his breath.

"That should've gone better," Han grumbles, checking over any readouts that were still functioning. "That wasn't supposed to be so rough, nearly was worse than that." Finn shifts uncomfortably in his seat the stands to place what he hopes is a comforting hand on Han's arm.

"Hey, you just performed the improbable by doing the impossible. It's not like there was a precedent to follow. I mean, I've been around lots of pilots and I've never even heard anybody talking about trying to do what you just did. You did great!" Finn gestures to the intact ship around them, to himself and the sky peeking out through the  _ Falcon _ 's dusty white covering. "We're down, we're alive, we're all in one piece. Why are you being so hard on yourself?"

Han shrugs his arm off with a grimace masquerading as a smile. "There was a time it wouldn't have been so rough, kid." Han pats Finn on the shoulder, and Finn lets him leave without another word.

\---

The snow and thick forest provide excellent cover as they make their way across the Base's landscape, with nothing but Chewbacca's heat distorter and Finn's primitive branch wiping keeping them concealed from the patrols. They keep to rocky surfaces where they can, leaving less footprints then when walking through powdery, untouched snow. The landscape becomes familiar and Finn rushes up to get Han's attention. "There's a flooding tunnel over that ridge, we can get in through there," he says, pointing out the ridge and the thin line of black metal beyond it.

"You sure it isn't safety screened? We can cut through ordinary stuff, but..."

Finn is quick to shake his head. "There's no screen at all, it would defeat the tunnel's purpose."

"What  _ was _ your job when you worked here?"

"Sanitation," Finn replies, looking away in shame.

" _ Sanitation, _ " Han says, gaping at him. "How do you know how to disable the shields? We've got enough stuff to do the job, but we have to know where to set it, and we've only got one chance to do it right. If we can't do this, everyone in the D'Qar system is going to die."

"I don't actually know how to disable the shields, I'm just here to get Rey," Finn admits, his face burning hot.

"Anything else you've overlooked? Anything else you've forgotten to tell us?" Han asks, spinning in increasingly frustrated circles, Chewie groaning his agreement. "People are counting on us! The  _Galaxy_ is counting on us!"

"Han!" Finn cries, stopping the man's pacing. "We'll figure it out. We've gotten this far, haven't we?"

"And how do you suppose we do that?"

"We'll use the Force!" Finn replies brightly, with an encouraging smile. Han sighs, hiding his own smile in the fold of his hood, and then rolls his eyes.

"Again with the Force, always the Force. Look Kid, I haven't got time to explain it to you, but that's not how the Force works. Where's that Patrol Droid?" He asks, looking around, and getting a week growl from Chewbacca in response. "Oh really?  _You're_ cold?" Finn smiles under the collar of Poe's jacket, and leads them towards the door, sliding it open to find a single Stormtrooper, who reaches for their blaster as soon as they see the trio, but is quickly taken out by a reflexively fast shot from Han. Chewie drags the body into an alcove where it will be hidden while Han and Finn take cover in a transport compartment, peering out into the hallway warily.

"The less time spent here, the better luck we're gonna have," Han says.

"Yeah, I know," Finn replies. "I have an idea about that." Finn leads them through the compound with ease, ducking behind doorways and alcoves every so often to remain hidden while trying to remember which guard rotations go where and at what time in order to avoid as many 'troopers as possible. Finally, he sees the person he's been looking for, her reflective armor and red-lined black cape unmistakable. "Here comes our key," he whispers.

"You know this one?" Han asks.

"Yeah, we've met," Finn replies shortly. Phasma is the reason he is what he is, the reason he let Slip fight his battles on his own, the reason Slip is gone, and it takes everything he has not to just shoot her between the armor plates, just like  _she_ showed him.

"An old friend huh?"

"Something like that," Finn says, his expression remaining grim, jaw tight. "As much as I wish otherwise, we need her alive. Is there a stun setting on this blaster? I'm unfamiliar with this model."

"We've got something else that's always set to stun," Han replies with a grin. They wait until a patrol of Stormtroopers passes through the hallway, and then Chewie reaches out to grab Phasma without preamble, thick furry arms easily detaining her, despite her struggles. Finn pinches his leg to keep from pulling the trigger of the blaster he has pressed to her helmet.

"Captain Phasma. Remember me?" He waves his weapon in her face in a way he acknowledges is slightly manic. "Here's my blaster, still wanna inspect it?"

"FN-2187," Phasma replies, her metallic-tinged voice calm and unrevealing.

"Not anymore. My name is Finn- a real name for a real person." Finn sees Han wince out of the corner of his eye and takes a deep breath. "And I'm in charge now."

Phasma says nothing, her helmet hiding any reaction she may have given to Finn's statement. Han gently shoulders his way past Finn, his mouth quirked in a cocky smirk. "We're just visiting. Finn's been giving us a quick tour, but we haven't seen the Planetary Shield Control Room yet." His smile broadens pleasantly, yet still comes across as intimidating. "We'd really like to see the Planetary Shield Control Room."

"Why would I show you anything?" Phasma asks with a derisive snort. Chewbacca moans threateningly behind her, tightening his grip until she lets out a small gasp.

"We'll find it eventually anyway, even if you don't," Han replies. "But you won't know that because you'll be dead. Chewie doesn't like people who threaten his friends." 

Phasma barely manages to shake her head. "Even a Wookie can't crush First Order armor."

"Well..." Han drawls, "there's one way to find out."

"Or," Finn adds, pushing the blaster muzzle closer to the gap between her armor and helmet, "I can shoot you instead. I'm well trained, you know. I know exactly where to put a kill shot, especially at this distance."

"What are you doing here?" Phasma counters. "Are you with the Resistance? Independents?"

"Why would I tell you anything?" Finn mimics, watching as Chewie disarms her. "Right now, you're out tour guide. Let's go."

They manage to avoid the few technicians and troopers they encounter along the way, ducking into small passageways. When they reach the room they are looking for, Finn is relieved to find only one guard between them and their goal. Finn steps out into the hall with a wave and a smile, hoping his friends will take advantage of the distraction.

"Hey, hi. When are you off duty mate?"

"Not for another..." The trooper pauses, taking in the entirety of Finn's appearance. "Why are you out of uniform? In fact, why are you in this sector?" He lifts his rifle slowly. "Put your hands where-" The trooper is cut off by Chewie's massive hand coming down on his head, immediately falling unconscious.

"What was that you said about First Order armor and Wookies earlier?" Han asks Phasma with a smirk. She says nothing.

The shield control room is fairly small, all things considered, and with everything functioning correctly there is no need for a technician; the technology being self-monitoring. Finn watches Phasma sit at the control panel, flinching minutely in pain, and then hesitating with her fingers over the controls. He glares at her and nudges the side of her helmet with his blaster. "Do it," he orders, Chewie backing him up with a growl. She reluctantly starts working on the controls, her actions followed quickly by a series of almost musical sounds, and the readout above the panel displays ' **SHIELDS DISABLE INITIATED** '. Finn's brief flare of success is quickly muted by worry and he leans towards Han. "Solo, if this works, we won't have a lot of time to look for Rey."

"Don't worry kid," Han replies with a comforting grin. "We won't leave here without her."

Phasma leans back in her seat. "I can't do this on my own. it requires two security codes to access the full system and shut it down."

"I've been in the business of dealing with liars and thieves my whole life. I can tell when someone is telling the truth- and when they're not." Han says, pressing his blaster against the Stormtrooper Captain's helmet. "How well can you hear with one ear?" Phasma's fingers dance across the controls once more, letting loose another small symphony, and a second message appears on the screen:  **SHIELDS DISABLED** .

"You can't be so stupid as to think this will be easy," Phasma says, a sneer evident in her tone. "My troops will storm this block and kill you all. Whatever you're planning won't work."

"I disagree," Finn replies. "I was told escape from the First Order is impossible, yet here I am. I was told that nothing could counteract my training, but I was able to escape to Jakku and survive." Finn turns away from his former Captain and towards Han. "What should we do with her?" Han ponders for a moment, then smirks wickedly.

"Is there a garbage chute? Trash compactor?" Han's idea takes hold in Finn's mind and he lets out a smirk of his own.

"Yeah, there is."

\---

"Black Leader, prepare to go sublight. Attack. Attack. On your call," crackles through Poe's comm, startling him into full alertness and releasing the knot of tension that had settled in the pit of his stomach with the concern that something would happen to Finn and the shields wouldn't be dropped. He nods to himself in the darkness of his cockpit, grinning at the thought that Finn made it, he's still safe. He breathes out and concentrates on the strike schematics he's been running over in his mind. He knows that timing is critical and has plotted the vector to the planet as an arc, both to deceive any long-range sensors, as well as to delay arrival and emergence from lightspeed.

"Roger, Base." Poe hits the controls necessary to alter his course within lightspeed and taps the comm to address the rest of his fleet. "Red squad, Blue Squad- follow my lead." With a touch he sends the revised vector to the flight computers of every ship in every squadron, each pilot adjusting as a single unit.

"Copy Black Leader," Snap says through the comm. Poe nods to himself again and mutes his side of the comms.

"I love you too, Finn," he breathes out as the streaked stars of lightspeed fade into bright sky, his fleet lining up in attack formation, and then speeds off towards the hexagonal oscillation control building, flicking his comms back on to call out directions. "Hit the target dead centre as many runs as we can get. Let's light it up!"

\---

 The self-lit grey walls of the base seem infinitely more oppressing as Finn leads the way down its corridors to the prisoner's cells. The oppressive feeling grows as he realizes the blast doors are firmly shut, something he had expected with the battle he can hear faintly through the metal surrounding them, but is discouraging all the same. Chewie starts removing the powerful small explosives he'd been carrying as Finn takes a deep breath and formulates a plan.

"We'll use the charges to blow the blast doors," he begins. "The prisoners' holding cells are down that corridor. I'll go in and draw fire, it's often heavily guarded, depending on who's being held. I'm going to need some cover."

"You sure you're up for this?" Han asks, eyeing him intently.

"No," Finn replies honestly. "But this whole gamble was my call, and it's my responsibility to see it through. I'll find Rey." He says this with as much confidence as he can muster, and he sees in Han's eyes that his reassurances worked. "There's a footbridge we have to cross. Troopers will be on our tail, so we should plant charges on that to..." He trails off as Han starts making a jerky movement with his head, but brushes it off. "It'll buy us some time. Oh, and there's an access tunnel that'll lead us-" he cuts himself off again when Han continues gesturing with his head. "Why are you doing that?" Finn asks exasperatedly. "I'm trying to come up with a plan here." Finally, Han sighs frustratedly and turns Finn around so he can see Rey climbing up an interior shaft wall directly towards them. Finn gapes in astonishment, nearly missing the blaster rifle in his face until Rey lowers it and throws herself into his arms. He holds her close, breathing in the Jakku sand smell that lingers in her hair, letting her warmth fill up the space inside of him that had been disconnected since she was taken. His shoulders come down from where his anxiety held them tense by his ears, most of his worry now resting in the air, zooming around in an X-wing. "Are you all right? What happened?" Finn asks, then his voice darkens. "Did he hurt you?"

"Never mind me," Rey says breathlessly. "What are you doing here?"

"We came back for you," Finn replies with a soft smile. Rey smiles brightly back at him, her lips moving around her grin as if trying to think of what to say, but coming up short. Chewie beats her to it, letting out a howl that has tears blooming in Rey's eyes. Finn gapes at her, wondering just what Chewie had said to her that was able to break through the immense inner strength he knows Rey is full of. "What'd he say?"

"That it was your idea," Rey replies with a sniffle, wiping her eyes on the back of her hand. The look in her eyes has Finn unable to speak, his breath halting in his throat, and so he pulls Rey into his arms once more, letting out a relieved chuckle.

"Alright, alright," Han interrupts. "We'll have a party later; I'll bring the cake. For now, let's get outta here."

\---

 Poe curses loudly as he dodges another blaster shot, letting loose a few shots of his own while he twists through the sky, his carefully organized attack plan falling apart around him as Pilots are forced to escape formation to take on their assailants as best they can individually. Poe nearly collides with an oncoming TIE fighter, barely managing to avoid it as he gets a hit on another.

"Cover for each other! There's a lot of 'em, but that just means more targets. Don't let these thugs scare you!"

"Blue three," Snap calls out, "you got one on your tail! Pull up!"

"Copy that!" replies the pilot, Jess Pava, her ship yanking up sharply, exposing her tail to Poe's fire, which immediately turns her attacker to smoke and flames. "I owe you one Dameron!"

"Yeah, you owe me another attack run!" Poe calls back. "Try to stick close, all teams, we've gotta get this done before their weapon is ready to fire, but remember, as long as there's light we've got a chance."

They just barely manage to fit in another bombing run amidst the swerving TIE fighters -that seem to blot out the blue of the sky in their numbers- with a small clutch of X-wings. However, as Poe pulls up and away he sees that the building is still intact, although smoking slightly from their fire, and remains completely undamaged.

"We're not making a dent!" Poe yells through the comms. "What's that thing made of, anyway?" Maybe he could ask Finn later, assuming that they- no. NO. He is going to get the chance to ask Finn later. Suddenly telltale beeping on his console demands his attention, and so he flicks his eyes to the attendant monitor, swearing creatively under his breath at what he sees.  _Hundreds_ of seekers, rising from launch batteries hidden under soil and snow, rising towards him and his pilots and giving them very little time or room to maneuver- or escape. "We've got a lotta company!!"

 It's the best warning he's able to give before being forced into action, blasting everything in front of him out of the sky and performing every trick in the book to avoid the ones behind him- and barely, just barely, stays in one piece. On the outskirts of the battle he watches as his fellow pilots get hemmed in and destroyed, as well as any TIE unlucky enough to be caught in the line of fire. He fires and fires and fires, desperately trying to rid his squadron, _his friends_ , of the threat, but when the smoke clears a little, at least half of his fellow pilots are gone. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Finn is the one who screamed. My Finn is very connected to great losses of life through the force, and so it hurts him when he feels all of those pilots die and the pain confuses him since he's still very new to the force and hasn't had the opportunity to learn how to use it to his advantage like Rey did watching Kylo using the force. Rey to me is very much going to be this awesome Jedi figure, but Finn I think will be something different, very much centred on the way the force flows through living creatures and such... I don't want to give tooo much away until he meets his teacher and stuff.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so so so so sorry, I sorta got really depressed and didn't want to write anymore so this took me waaaaaay too long to finish... Hopefully I'll be writing more soon :)

Finn stumbles, a sharp pain throbbing behind his temples, and Rey moves to hold him steady, concern etched on her face. "Finn? Finn, what's wrong?"

"So many are dead."

"What do you mean Finn?" Finn gestures upwards to the battle raging between the Resistance and the First Order, at the ships getting hemmed in by thousands of seekers, and exploding in great bursts of heat and light. Rey looks at Han who mouths 'the Force' at her and she nods quickly in comprehension, taking Finn's hand in hers. "I understand. Are you okay to keep moving?"

"Yeah," Finn says shakily, reaching over to pull Poe's jacket tighter around Rey's bare shoulders, letting the scent of the leather calm him. He risks a quick glance upwards again, the battle too thick with smoke and enemy fire to pick out any single X-Wing, and realizes that their situation is hopeless. "We have to do something to help them." Han looks at Finn solemnly, then nods.

"Well, Chewie still has a bag full of explosives we didn't use inside. It'd be a shame if he had to haul them all the way back to the  _ Falcon _ ," he says, a hint of the cocky young rebel he once was coming through in his tone. "What's the best place we can put 'em to use?"

"The Oscillator is the only sensible target, but we have no way to get in," Finn replies.

"Yes we do," Rey says. Chewie howls at her in question, and she smiles knowledgably. "I've seen inside of these kinds of walls as a scavenger, the mechanics and instrumentation are the same as a Star Destroyer's. If you can get me to a conventional junction station, I can get us in." Finn beams widely at her and Han gives her a proud nod. They search around for transportation and with a combination of Finn's training and Rey's knowledge of technology they get a snow speeder started. Finn and Rey hop in and head for the conventional junction station while Han and Chewie make their way to the Oscillator.

Rey careens over a snowdrift, having difficulty maintaining control over the unfamiliar machine, scattering small local creatures in their path. "Did you find the Resistance?" Rey asks, her voice raised over the noise of the engine and plumes of snow being kicked up by the machine.

"Yeah! We got BeeBee back, and I found Poe Rey! I found him and... and I..."

"And you what?"

"I told him that I love him," Finn yells back, smiling tentatively, despite himself. Rey is surprised, but smiles in return, happy for her friend.

"That's great Finn." She tries to say something else, but is stopped by a blast of misty snow to the face as she squeezes the speeder through a patch of trees. "Kriff, snow is  _ cold _ ."

"Try living here!" Finn replies. "There's only two seasons: winter, and dead of winter."

A sudden shock goes through the speeder as it takes a hit. Rey switches systems smoothly and maintains their speed, successfully evading a second shot. Turning, they see a second speeder closing in on them, Finn noting that they were in position to take them out with the next burst. The only way they could make it was if they switched places, a dangerous maneuver that would have to happen in  _ seconds _ if they wanted to survive. "Rey! Switch!" he holds out a hand and they pull each other in a small arc, seamlessly switching their positions so Rey can drive and Finn can return fire, which he wastes no time doing. The next barrage of shots miss, the other driver clearly knows what he's doing, and Rey is forced to slalom around the trees. Finally, his shot strikes home, and Finn tries not to think about whether the trooper that falls from the vehicle was a former squad mate or not.  The speeder slams into a tree, exploding in a burst of fire and smoke, and Finn breathes in, his gaze drawn to the sky. This time he isn't drawn to the violent battle over the oscillator, but the intense purple light flowing from the horizon, a curtain of energy being drawn into the planet's core by the weapon.

"We're running out of time!"

"Don't worry, we'll get there!" Rey yells back at him, with only a hint of a waver in her voice. Thankfully, it doesn't take very long for her to pull to a stop in front of an unremarkable, small black structure. She hops off the speeder and immediately sets to work, opening up the maintenance hatch and deftly disconnecting piece after piece of the machinery. "Been doing this all my life. Never thought about it really, it was just something I did to survive, routine, you know?" Finn nods, routine is something he knows all too well. He laughs quietly in amazement when Rey closes her eyes and continues disassembling the interior of the box. When she opens them again she smiles, not having missed a single component. "I would have gotten at least three portions for this." 

"Portions?"   

"Never mind, I was just pointing out that every piece can be important. Like  _ this _ , for example." She reaches deep into the mechanism and pulls, a small length of brightly coloured flow fiber coming away in her hand.

\---

Finn is unsure what they were expecting when they slipped inside the Oscillator containment building, but Han Solo facing off against  _ Kylo Ren  _ definitely was not part of the plan.

"That's what Snoke wants you to believe," Han says, not pleading, just stating a fact. "My son is still alive. I'm looking at him right now."

Finn's mouth drops a little at that revelation. There had always been rumours, but none of the Stormtroopers he'd bunked with were ever high enough in the Order to confirm them. Movement from one of the balconies draws Finn's eye to where Chewbacca stands, watching the conversation intently.

"No! The Supreme Leader is wise. He knows me for who I am and who I can become. He knows you for who you are as well; nothing but a smuggler and a small-time thief."

"Well he's got that part right," Han says, and after a flash of a smirk any hint of humor fades, his face becoming worn in its absence. Han starts to walk towards his son, no hesitation or caution in his step. "Snoke is using you for your power, manipulating your abilities. When he's gotten everything he wants out of you, he'll crush you, toss you aside. You know it's true. If you have half of the ability, the perception, that I know you do, you'll know I'm telling the truth. Because unlike him, I have nothing to gain from it."

A group of Stormtroopers takes up residence on the walkway directly across and a level lower then where Finn and Rey stand, watching the scene unfold below them, waved back from firing by the Squadron leader.

"It's too late," Ren says after a pause.

"No, it's not," Han says encouragingly, nearly halfway across the walkway with a smile growing on his lips. "Never too late for the truth. Leave here with me, come home." His words are honest, said without malice. "Your mother misses you." A flicker of something dances across Ren's expression at that, and tears streak down his face with a suddenness that surprises even the man crying them.

"I'm being torn apart- I want to be free of this, of this  _ pain _ ."  Han takes another step, then pauses, waiting, the next step isn't his to take. "I know what I have to do, but I don't know if I have the strength to do it." Ren starts moving, getting incrementally closer and closer to where his father stands. "Will you help me?"

"Yes," Han says firmly, "Anything."

Ren stops an arm's length from his father, unclipping his lightsaber from his belt, staring at it for a moment, and then extends it towards his father. The next moment seems to extend into a lifetime, Han reaches for the lightsaber, smile firmly fixed in place and it looks like Ren will let him take it. Then, as the light from the dying sun is blocked out by the descending accumulated dark energy, Ren ignites the lightsaber- and the fiery red beam slides swiftly through Han's chest. Rey screams beside him, and there is a piercing pain in his chest, but his eyes are fixed on the way Han reaches up to stroke his son's cheek ever so gently, and dies with a ghost of a smile on his lips. The beam retracts back into the 'saber, and Han falls off of the walkway with a strange grace. Ren falls to his knees, bowing his head to hide his expression, and that is when Chewie howls, the sound so full of anguish Finn shudders, and shoots his crossbow directly into Ren's left side. The Stormtroopers startle into alertness at the sound and starts to fire back at him, the distraught Wookie taking out a fair amount of their number. Rey starts firing as well, tears streaking her face and pained anger blazing in her eyes. Finally, the Wookie presses the detonator, setting off a series of explosions that rock the entire building. Chewie runs off down the corridor, a blaze of fire following after him. Ren forces himself up, and Finn flinches as the man locks onto him and Rey, their eyes meeting and sending a wave of unease and revulsion through Finn's body.

"Come on Rey, we have to go," Finn says, tugging on her hand. She shakes her head and tries to continue firing wildly through her tears. Finn sighs and wraps his arms firmly around her waist, pulling her with him towards the ladder out of the building.

\---

 Poe sighs in the darkness of his cockpit, descending darkness swathing everything in a curtain of shadow. He's just let go of his last threads of optimism when the ground emits a great burst of fire; an explosion on the side of the containment centre. The intensity and configuration tell him that it wasn't caused by X-Wing fire, but instead a blast from within the structure itself. It's an opening. A small one. But Poe has been in the business of narrow misses and winged missions for too long not to take the chance, especially given the way the fight is going. "All units, this is Black Leader. Target's structural integrity has been breached! There's an opening. Now's our chance, give it everything you've got!" His squadron lines up behind him and prepares to do another bombing run, but are halted by more incoming attackers, pulling the wings of his attack formation out to engage them. "This isn't working. I'm going to have to go in alone."

"Dameron, I don't think-" Poe cuts Jess off sharply.

"That wasn't a suggestion Pava. All teams pull up and cover me." For a moment there is nothing but a chorus of heavy sighs, then Jess replies.

"Copy that, Black Leader."

"Good luck Poe," Snap adds with fond exasperation. Poe waits for his team to pull out of the trench in front of the Oscillator then takes a deep breath and angles the nose of his X-Wing further down, speeding towards the still smoking hole in the side of the building. At the last second he swivels his X-Wing vertically, slipping through the hole in the Oscillator and immediately getting to work, firing at support beams, rows of tech, anything that looks even remotely important; his vision becoming obscured by the smoke and fire filling the building. He can hear the building groan and shudder, alarms blaring throughout the complex and turns his X-Wing as quickly as possible back to the cavity in the side of the oscillator. He takes a breath as he speeds away, then two, then three, and finally on the fourth breath he hears the rupture of the system, heat blaring through the X-Wing's vents and finding him in the cockpit, while the sky around him erupts in black smoke and ash and the ground rumbles and bursts as the planet itself begins to be overtaken by its core.

Poe lets out a whoop of pure joy, rocketing his X-wing into the outer atmosphere, BB-8 beeping excitedly behind him.

"All teams, nice job!" he calls to his fellow pilots, hitting the comm back to base with an excited jab of his thumb. "General, the target's been destroyed."

"Good," Leia replies, her voice warm, but strangely shaky. "Now retreat immediately! The planet could be unstable. Get out of there now."

Logically, Poe knows that it's the smart maneuver, over half of the Resistance's forces have been gunned down trying to take out Starkiller base, and they need all the people they can get, but he also knows there is no way he's going anywhere until he knows Finn has gotten off the planet.

"General, with all due respect, I'm not going anywhere until our friends are off of this planet. Teams, who's with me?"

He expects some thought, a delay in response, but almost immediately Snap's voice crackles over his comm. "We're all with you Poe, you know that." A series of agreements from the other pilots follow Snap's statement and Poe shakes his head in amazement; he has the best friends in the Galaxy.

"Then let's do some good and find them!"

The forest is cold, the trees dark and oppressive, and Finn has no idea where he and Rey are even going, so he stops, taking heaving breaths as he tries to regroup. He reaches out to ask Rey if she's alright when he hears the crunch of clean snow under boots and a hard voice yells out "Stop!" Finn looks up to see Kylo Ren staring them down, one arm pressing tightly to his side, his wound weeping blood, his lightsaber clutched tightly in the other. Rey steps forward, blaster raised, but then Ren raises his bloodied hand, halting her, the strain of her trying to fight against him in her anger clear on her face. Ren grits his teeth and jerkily flicks his arm, sending Rey flying, her body hitting the trunk of a tree with a solid thunk, leaving her unconscious before her body hits the ground. "Rey! Rey." Finn runs towards her, cradling her head and checking her pulse. He lets out a soft sigh of relief and brushes stray hair out of her face. He lifts his head when he hears the angry spitting of Ren's lightsaber being ignited, and stands resolutely, turning to face the other man, and reaches for the only weapon he has- the blue lightsaber at his belt. Ren pauses when he sees it, rage filtering into his features.

"That lightsaber- it belongs to me!"

"Come and get it," Finn snarls, the saber casting a blue glow over his face when he ignites it.

"I'm going to kill you for it," Ren says, drawing himself up to full height, and then charging towards Finn. Finn holds up the saber, blocking the first strike of Ren's blade despite his fear, sparks of light flying and illuminating the snow and trees around them in a violent purple. Ren draws back, assessing his opponent before he strikes again savagely, and Finn parries strike after strike, no counter-attack proving as successful as his defense. The longer they battle, the greater Ren's strength seems to grow, the man feeding on the challenge Finn provides like it is the only sustenance he requires. Then suddenly, Finn repels a blow and stabs forwards, his lightsaber puncturing Ren's shoulder, and forcing him to take another step back and reassess Finn once more. When he attacks next, his strikes are relentless, driven by something Finn can't grasp, pushing him back until Ren has him pinned to a tree, forcing his blade forward until he pierces Finn's shoulder with one of the smaller blades of light that make up the hilt of his 'saber. Finn screams in pain, then pushes Ren back, trying to ignore the pain and continue fighting, but a quick slash of Ren's 'saber has Finn's lightsaber flying out of his grasp and into the snow, followed by another that sends a flare of agony lancing up his spine and darkness consuming his vision.

 


End file.
